A contemporary update on glioblastoma: molecular biology, current management, and a vision towards bio-adaptable personalized care.

ABSTRACT

INTRODUCTION: Glioblastoma (GBM) is the most fatal brain tumor in adults. Current survival rates of GBM remain below 2 years due to GBM's aggressive cellular migration and genetically driven treatment escape pathways. Despite our rapidly increasing understanding of GBM biology, earlier diagnoses, and refined surgical techniques, only moderate survival benefits have been achieved. Nonetheless, the pressing need for better survival rates has brought forward a multitude of newer therapeutic approaches and opened the door for potential personalization of these modalities in the near future. METHODS: We reviewed the published literature discussing the current state of knowledge regarding GBM biology and therapy and summarized the information that may point toward future personalized therapeutic strategies. RESULTS: Several novel modalities such as oncolytic viruses, targeted immune, and molecular therapies, and tumor treating fields have been introduced. To date, there is no single treatment modality for GBM, but rather a wide spectrum of combined modalities that address intratumoral cellular and genetic variabilities. While the current state of GBM research and clinical trial landscape may hold promise, current literature lacks any fruitful progress towards personalized GBM therapy. CONCLUSION: In this review, we are discussing our recent knowledge of the GBM genetic biologic landscape and the current advances in therapy, as well as providing a blueprint for an envisioned GBM management paradigm that should be personalized and adaptable to accommodate each patient's diverse genetic variations and therapy response/escape patterns.