Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2021 Feb;50(2):E4.
doi: 10.3171/2020.11.FOCUS20859.

Using viral vectors to deliver local immunotherapy to glioblastoma

Alexander F Haddad, Jacob S Young, Manish K Aghi
Review

Using viral vectors to deliver local immunotherapy to glioblastoma

Alexander F Haddad et al. Neurosurg Focus. 2021 Feb.

Abstract

The treatment for glioblastoma (GBM) has not seen significant improvement in over a decade. Immunotherapies target the immune system against tumor cells and have seen success in various cancer types. However, the efficacy of immunotherapies in GBM thus far has been limited. Systemic immunotherapies also carry with them concerns surrounding systemic toxicities as well as penetration of the blood-brain barrier. These concerns may potentially limit their efficacy in GBM and preclude the use of combinatorial immunotherapy, which may be needed to overcome the severe multidimensional immune suppression seen in GBM patients. The use of viral vectors to deliver immunotherapies directly to tumor cells has the potential to improve immunotherapy delivery to the CNS, reduce systemic toxicities, and increase treatment efficacy. Indeed, preclinical studies investigating the delivery of immunomodulators to GBM using viral vectors have demonstrated significant promise. In this review, the authors discuss previous studies investigating the delivery of local immunotherapy using viral vectors. They also discuss the future of these treatments, including the reasoning behind immunomodulator and vector selection, patient safety, personalized therapies, and the need for combinatorial treatment.

Keywords: cytokines; glioblastoma; immunotherapy; oncolytic viruses; treatment.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

Disclosures

The authors report no conflict of interest concerning the materials or methods used in this study or the findings specified in this paper.

References

    1. Stupp R, Mason WP, van den Bent MJ, et al. Radiotherapy plus concomitant and adjuvant temozolomide for glioblastoma. N Engl J Med. 2005; 352(10): 987–996. - PubMed
    1. Ostrom QT, Cioffi G, Gittleman H, et al. CBTRUS statistical report: primary brain and other central nervous system tumors diagnosed in the United States in 2012–2016. Neuro Oncol. 2019; 21(5)(suppl 5): v1–v100. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Young JS, Dayani F, Morshed RA, et al. Immunotherapy for high grade gliomas: a clinical update and practical considerations for neurosurgeons. World Neurosurg. 2019; 124: 397–409. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Reardon DA, Brandes AA, Omuro A, et al. Effect of nivolumab vs bevacizumab in patients with recurrent glioblastoma: the CheckMate 143 Phase 3 randomized clinical trial. JAMA Oncol. 2020; 6(7): 1003–1010. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Montoya ML, Kasahara N, Okada H. Introduction to immunotherapy for brain tumor patients: challenges and future perspectives. Neurooncol Pract. 2020; 7(5): 465–476. - PMC - PubMed