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Immunotherapy for Brain Tumors: Where We Have Been, and Where Do We Go From Here?

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Opinion statement

Immunotherapy for glioblastoma (GBM) remains an intensive area of investigation. Given the seismic impact of cancer immunotherapy across a range of malignancies, there is optimism that harnessing the power of immunity will influence GBM as well. However, despite several phase 3 studies, there are still no FDA-approved immunotherapies for GBM. Importantly, the field has learned a great deal from the randomized studies to date. Today, we are continuing to better understand the disease-specific features of the microenvironment in GBM—as well as the exploitable antigenic characteristic of the tumor cells themselves—that are informing the next generation of immune-based therapeutic strategies. The coming phase of next-generation immunotherapies is thus poised to bring us closer to treatments that will improve the lives of patients with GBM.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Neurosurgery, Massachusetts General Hospital, 55 Fruit Street, Boston, MA, 02114, USA

    Alexander F. Wang BS, Brian Hsueh MD, PhD, Bryan D. Choi MD, PhD & Gavin P. Dunn MD, PhD

  2. Brain Tumor Immunology and Immunotherapy Program, Department of Neurosurgery, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA

    Bryan D. Choi MD, PhD & Gavin P. Dunn MD, PhD

  3. Department of Neurology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA

    Elizabeth R. Gerstner MD

  4. Stephen E. and Catherine Pappas Center for Neuro-Oncology, Massachusetts General Hospital Cancer Center, Boston, MA, USA

    Elizabeth R. Gerstner MD

Authors
  1. Alexander F. Wang BS
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  2. Brian Hsueh MD, PhD
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  3. Bryan D. Choi MD, PhD
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  4. Elizabeth R. Gerstner MD
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  5. Gavin P. Dunn MD, PhD
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Contributions

A.F.W performed the primary literature review, created the figure, and drafted the manuscript. B.H, B.D.C, E.R.G, and G.P.D revised the manuscript for intellectual content.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Gavin P. Dunn MD, PhD.

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Wang, A.F., Hsueh, B., Choi, B.D. et al. Immunotherapy for Brain Tumors: Where We Have Been, and Where Do We Go From Here?. Curr. Treat. Options in Oncol. 25, 628–643 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11864-024-01200-9

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