Scientists at the University of Virginia Comprehensive Cancer Center have developed a promising experimental strategy for treating glioblastoma, the most common and aggressive malignant brain tumor in adults. The new approach could help overcome some of the biggest obstacles that have limited the effectiveness of existing brain cancer treatments. The research team, led by UVA's Roger Abounader, MD, PhD, identified tiny genetic molecules known as "microRNAs" that can interfere with several genes responsible for the development and growth of glioblastoma.
To deliver these molecules into the brain, the researchers combined specialized nanoparticles, focused ultrasound and microscopic bubbles. Together, these technologies offer a way to temporarily cross the brain's protective barrier, which normally prevents many treatments from reaching brain tumors and other neurological conditions. "This new approach could help target numerous molecules that promote cancer growth, including those for which no drugs exist, at the same time to achieve better therapies," said Abounader, a professor at UVA's School of Medicine in the Department of Microbiology, Immunology and Cancer Biology, as well as its Comprehensive Cancer Center and Center for RNA Science and Medicine.
"We are hoping to translate our findings into future clinical trials for patients with glioblastoma and other brain tumors." Why Glioblastoma Is So Difficult to Treat Glioblastoma is the most common malignant brain tumor in adults and one of the most aggressive forms of cancer. It claims more than 13,000 lives in the United States each year. One reason it is so difficult to treat is that cancer cells spread into surrounding healthy brain tissue, making it nearly impossible for surgeons to remove the entire tumor.
Another major challenge is the brain's natural "blood-brain barrier." This protective system helps shield the brain from harmful substances, including toxins and infectious agents. Unfortunately, it also blocks many drugs that could otherwise be used to attack brain cancer. Current treatment generally begins with surgery to remove as much of the tumor as possible.
Patients then receive radiation therapy and chemotherapy to help control the remaining cancer and extend survival. Despite these efforts, glioblastoma remains exceptionally difficult to manage. The UVA researchers are pursuing a different strategy.
Instead of relying on drugs that target individual cancer-related processes, their approach uses microRNAs, small pieces of genetic material capable of suppressing the activity of multiple problematic genes at the same time. By disrupting several genes that help glioblastoma grow and survive, the treatment could potentially slow or even stop tumor growth. This ability to target multiple cancer-driving mechanisms is especially important because combining several conventional cancer drugs can produce harmful side effects.
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