Cellular and molecular features related to exceptional therapy response and extreme long‐term survival in glioblastoma

• Published in: Cancer medicine (Malden, MA) Vol. 12; no. 10; pp. 11107 - 11126
• Main Authors: Decraene, B., Vanmechelen, M., Clement, P., Daisne, J. F., Vanden Bempt, I., Sciot, R., Garg, A. D., Agostinis, P., De Smet, F., De Vleeschouwer, S.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States John Wiley & Sons, Inc 01.05.2023; John Wiley and Sons Inc; Wiley
• Subjects: Biomarkers; Brain cancer; Brain Neoplasms - genetics; Brain Neoplasms - therapy; Brain tumors; Chemotherapy; DNA methylation; Epigenetics; gbm; Gene expression; Glioblastoma; Glioblastoma - genetics; Glioblastoma - therapy; Glioblastoma multiforme; Humans; long‐term survivors; Medical prognosis; molecular markers; Mutation; Patients; Prognosis; Radiation therapy; Review; REVIEWS; Tumor microenvironment; Tumor Microenvironment - genetics; Tumors; gbm; glioblastoma; molecular markers; long-term survivors
• ISSN: 2045-7634; 2045-7634
• DOI: 10.1002/cam4.5681

Glioblastoma Multiforme (GBM) remains the most common malignant primary brain tumor with a dismal prognosis that rarely exceeds beyond 2 years despite extensive therapy, which consists of maximal safe surgical resection, radiotherapy, and/or chemotherapy. Recently, it has become clear that GBM is not one homogeneous entity and that both intra‐and intertumoral heterogeneity contributes significantly to differences in tumoral behavior which may consequently be responsible for differences in survival. Strikingly and in spite of its dismal prognosis, small fractions of GBM patients seem to display extremely long survival, defined as surviving over 10 years after diagnosis, compared to the large majority of patients. Although the underlying mechanisms for this peculiarity remain largely unknown, emerging data suggest that still poorly characterized both cellular and molecular factors of the tumor microenvironment and their interplay probably play an important role. We hereby give an extensive overview of what is yet known about these cellular and molecular features shaping extreme long survival in GBM. A comprehensive overview of cellular and molecular features related to exceptional therapy response and extreme long‐term survival in glioblastoma patients.