Untying the Gordian Knot : Why Glioblastomas are Still Incurable, and How Can We overcome the Hurdles

Abstract

  We are currently observing a plethora of new anti-cancer drugs which represent the fruits of extensive cancer research conducted over the past several decades. Some of these novel drugs can help achieve practical cure in hitherto deadly cancers. On the other hand, the prognosis of glioblastoma still remains one of the worst. This may be a good time to reflect on the reasons and the underlying mechanisms of such poor prognoses in glioblastomas. Some of the obvious reasons include the location, the highly invasive nature, and resistance to radiation, chemotherapy, and immunotherapy. Several novel therapeutic strategies are being developed to overcome these obstacles. Here we analytically summarize this topic.