With the form of cancer, glioblastoma multiforme is the most common and aggressive type of malignant primary brain tumor, with a median survival of 10-12 months. Glioblastoma begins within the brain. Initially, signs and symptoms of glioblastoma are nonspecific. The cancer occurs most often in the cerebral hemispheres, especially in the frontal and temporal lobes of the brain. Treatment options include surgery, irradiation and chemotherapy. However, the cancer can be very difficult to treat and a cure is often not possible.
With the new medical technology, Xoft brain IORT allows radiation oncologists and surgeons to work together to deliver a full course of radiation treatment in one day, at the time of surgery, while the patient remains under anesthesia. This compares to traditional external beam radiation therapy, which involves weeks of daily radiation treatments.
Furthermore, the research is particularly relevant in the era of COVID-19, as recent clinical guidelines issued by several national medical societies now recommend an abbreviated course of radiation, when appropriate.
The supporting study involved 30 patients with recurrent glioblastoma multiforme who were treated between August 2016 and June 2019. All patients underwent maximal safe resection; 15 patients were treated with IORT without adjunctive chemotherapy, while the other 15 were treated with external beam radiation therapy and temozolomide.
According to study findings, the average (median) overall survival was 27 months in the IORT group, versus 21 months in the external beam group. In addition, the local progression free survival range for the IORT group was between 3.5 to 39 months, versus 2 to 10 months in the EBRT group.
In terms of post-trial assessment, eight patients from the IORT group were still alive as of December 2019, whereas none of the patients in the external beam group survived. From this, the overall survival benefit reached statistical significance in the IORT group, which has led scientists to conclude that IORT of recurrent glioblastoma multiforme is feasible and provides encouraging local progression-free and overall survival, with a manageable toxicity profile.
Hence, the research shows that Xoft brain IORT may not only extend lives for patients with glioblastoma multiforme, it may also improve their quality of life. The findings are detailed in the white paper “Intra-operative radiation therapy as salvage treatment option for recurrent glioblastoma multiforme.”
