Biomaterial-based local drug delivery to brain tumors

Glioblastoma (GBM) is the most prevalent and aggressive malignant brain tumor with a median survival from diagnosis of 12–15 months. Standard-of-care treatment consists of radical surgery followed by radiotherapy with concomitant systemic temozolomide. Nevertheless, due to the infiltrative nature of GBM, this treatment strategy almost universally fails to eradicate minimal volume residual disease, which typically recurs within 2 cm from the original lesion [1]. A homogeneous treatment regime and regrowth of the tumor locally present a firm clinical and scientific rationale in which to develop innovative therapies delivered interstitially. There is a critical need to develop more effective and targeted chemotherapy regimes that can eradicate residual GBM cells following neurosurgical resection, thereby improving local control within the brain parenchyma beyond the surgical cavity wall and reducing the risk of tumor recurrence [2]. The opportunity to deliver therapeutic cancer drug concentrations locally creates the possibility of improving both the safety (low toxic dose systemically) and efficacy (high effective dose locally) of cancer chemotherapy, thereby enhancing the benefit of surgery, as well as continuing antineoplastic treatment during the interval between surgery and commencement of systemic adjuvant therapy.

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