High-Dose Chemotherapy with Bone Marrow Rescue for High-Grade Gliomas in Adults

• Published in: Cancer investigation Vol. 19; no. 1; pp. 41 - 48
• Main Authors: Brandes, Alba Ariela, Palmisano, Valentina, Pasetto, Lara Maria, Basso, Umberto, Monfardini, Silvio
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: New York, NY Informa UK Ltd 2001; Taylor & Francis; Informa Healthcare
• Subjects: Adult; Adults; Antineoplastic agents; Antineoplastic Agents - administration & dosage; Antineoplastic Agents - adverse effects; Biological and medical sciences; Bone Marrow Transplantation; Brain Neoplasms; Carmustine - administration & dosage; Chemotherapy, Adjuvant; Combined Modality Therapy; Combined treatments (chemotherapy of immunotherapy associated with an other treatment); Glioma - therapy; High-dose chemotherapy; High-grade gliomas; Humans; Medical sciences; Neoplasm Recurrence, Local; Pharmacology. Drug treatments; Review; Transplantation, Autologous; Antineoplastic agent; Human; Intracranial; Nervous system diseases; Drug combination; Toxicity; Treatment efficiency; Autologous system; Malignant tumor; Review; Survival; Cerebral disorder; Malignant glioma; Chemotherapy; Treatment; Immunotherapy; Central nervous system disease; Bone marrow; Clinical trial; Graft; Combined treatment; High dose
• ISSN: 0735-7907; 1532-4192
• DOI: 10.1081/CNV-100000084

High-grade malignant gliomas are inevitably fatal, despite every effort to improve this prognosis, including various radiotherapeutic modalities, radio- and chemotherapeutic associations, and combinations of several drugs. High-dose chemotherapy and autologous bone-marrow transplantation (ABMT) have been increasingly used in the last 10 years for solid tumors, and several phase II studies in high-grade glioma patients have been conducted in the setting of both adjuvant treatment and recurrent disease. The most frequently used drug in the conditioning regimens is BCNU at doses higher than that employed by other regimens in other pathologies (800-1000 mg m2). These dosages involve a high toxicity that is not balanced by a significant improvement in survival. New drugs and or regimens must be tested in randomized trials.