Alternating Electric Fields (“Tumour-Treating Fields”) for the Treatment of Glioblastoma

Excerpt

1. Glioblastoma is the most common type of primary brain cancer in adults.

2. Despite advances in treatment, life expectancy for patients with glioblastoma is typically less than two years.

3. Optune is a wearable technology intended for use in addition to standard therapies ― surgical resection, radiation therapy, and chemotherapy ― in adults with either newly diagnosed or recurrent glioblastoma. It has also been trialled as a single therapy for adult patients with recurrent glioblastoma.

4. Optune delivers alternating electric fields, or “tumour-treating fields,” to the brain to disrupt cancer cell division.

5. The evidence suggests that some patients with newly diagnosed glioblastoma treated with Optune may live longer, although which patients are most likely to benefit is not yet entirely clear.

6. The cost of therapy with the Optune system is about US$21,000 per patient, per month.