Bevacizumab-based therapy in relapsed glioblastoma: rationale and clinical experience to date

Expert Rev Anticancer Ther. 2012 Nov;12(11):1413-27. doi: 10.1586/era.12.128.

Abstract

Relapsed glioblastoma (GBM) has an extremely poor prognosis and remains an invariably fatal disease, with a median overall survival of 6-7 months. Despite numerous clinical trials over the past 20-30 years, treatment options for relapsed GBM remain limited. In recent years, significant research efforts have focused on the use of antiangiogenic therapies for the treatment of GBM. Bevacizumab is a humanized monoclonal antibody that specifically inhibits the proangiogenic VEGF, with well-established clinical efficacy in a number of solid malignancies, which is now under investigation for the treatment of GBM. In this review, we discuss the available data regarding bevacizumab-based therapy in relapsed GBM, highlighting its potential and ongoing challenges in this difficult-to-treat disease.

Publication types

  • Review

MeSH terms

  • Angiogenesis Inhibitors / pharmacology
  • Angiogenesis Inhibitors / therapeutic use*
  • Antibodies, Monoclonal, Humanized / pharmacology
  • Antibodies, Monoclonal, Humanized / therapeutic use*
  • Bevacizumab
  • Brain Neoplasms / blood supply
  • Brain Neoplasms / drug therapy
  • Brain Neoplasms / pathology
  • Glioblastoma / blood supply
  • Glioblastoma / drug therapy*
  • Glioblastoma / pathology
  • Humans
  • Neoplasm Recurrence, Local
  • Neovascularization, Pathologic / drug therapy
  • Prognosis
  • Survival Rate
  • Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor A / antagonists & inhibitors

Substances

  • Angiogenesis Inhibitors
  • Antibodies, Monoclonal, Humanized
  • Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor A
  • Bevacizumab