Abstract
Immunotherapy has emerged as a promising tool in the management of malignant central nervous system tumors. Despite improvement in patient survival, traditional approaches, which consist mostly of surgery, radiotherapy, and chemotherapy, have been largely unsuccessful in permanently controlling these aggressive tumors. Immunotherapeutic strategies offer not only a novel approach but also an advantage in a way other modalities have been failing. Specifically, the capabilities of the immune system to recognize altered cells while leaving normal cells intact offer tremendous advantage over the conventional therapeutic approaches. This article summarizes our current understanding of immunotherapeutic treatment modalities used in clinical trials for management of malignant central nervous system tumors.
Original language | English (US) |
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Pages (from-to) | 987-1004 |
Number of pages | 18 |
Journal | Surgical Oncology Clinics of North America |
Volume | 16 |
Issue number | 4 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Oct 2007 |
Funding
This work was supported by a grant from the National Institutes of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (K08 NS046430 [ML]) and the Elsa U. Pardee Foundation (ML).
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Oncology
- Surgery