Objective:
Glioblastoma is a highly aggressive and invasive brain and Central Nervous System
(CNS) tumor. Current treatment options do not prolong overall survival significantly because the
disease is highly prone to relapse. Therefore, research to find new therapies is of paramount importance.
It has been discovered that glioblastomas contain a population of cells with stem-like properties and that
these cells are may be responsible for tumor recurrence.
Methods:
A review of relevant papers and clinical trials in the field was conducted. A PubMed search
with related keywords was used to gather the data. For example, “glioblastoma stem cells AND WNT
signaling” is an example used to find information on clinical trials using the database ClinicalTrials.gov.
Results:
Cancer stem cell research has several fundamental issues and uncertainties that should be taken
into consideration. Theoretically, a number of treatment options that target glioblastoma stem cells are
available for patients. However, only a few of them have obtained promising results in clinical trials.
Several strategies are still under investigation.
Conclusion:
The majority of treatments to target cancer stem cells have failed during clinical trials. Taking
into account a number of biases in the field and the number of unsuccessful investigations, the application
of the cancer stem cells concept is questionable in clinical settings, at least with respect to
glioblastoma.
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