Brain Tumors
Brain tumors can be classified as primary or secondary. Primary brain tumors are those that form in the brain. Secondary brain tumors originate elsewhere in the body, then eventually spread, or metastasize, to the brain. Brain tumors can also be benign or malignant. Benign brain tumors are those that have very distinct borders, grow slowly and rarely spread. Although the tumor is confined to a specific area, depending upon the location, it can press against vital areas of the brain and still be life-threatening. Malignant brain tumors grow rapidly, invade surrounding tissue and are often life-threatening.

According to the National Brain Tumor Foundation, about 29,000 Americans are diagnosed with a brain tumor each year and about 13,000 people die from them. Brain tumors are a leading cause of cancer death for children and the second leading cause of cancer death for adults 20-39. In adults, the average age at diagnosis is 54.

There are more than 120 different types of brain tumors. One of the most common types of primary brain tumors is a glioblastoma. This type of brain tumor tends to grow very rapidly and spread to nearby tissue. It is more common in men than in women and is typically diagnosed in people in their 50s, 60s and 70s. Because the tumor is so aggressive, survival rates are very poor. The median survival time after diagnosis is 40 to 50 weeks.

Treating Glioblastoma
The first step in treatment of a glioblastoma is surgery. Doctors try to remove as much of the tumor as safely possible. Radiation often follows surgery to try to kill any remaining cancer cells. There are several different ways to administer radiation, from conventional X-ray beams or stereotactic radiation (using computers and markers to guide targeted X-ray beams from varying points and angles outside the body) to implanted radiation sources.

Chemotherapy is the use of anticancer medication to fight brain tumors. One of the biggest problems associated with chemotherapy for brain tumors is the inability of many drugs to get across the blood-brain barrier – a protective network of blood vessels and cells that blocks harmful chemicals and some invading microorganisms from reaching and harming vital brain tissue. Some physicians are using special wafers impregnated with chemotherapy drugs and implanted directly into the brain after surgery at the site of the tumor.

A Vaccine for Brain Tumors
Researchers at UCLA’s Jonsson Cancer Center are testing a new vaccine for patients with primary brain tumors. Unlike traditional vaccines, which are meant to protect the body against disease, the brain tumor vaccine is used after the brain tumor has been surgically removed to reduce the risk of stray cancer cells from growing and causing the tumor to reappear.

The vaccines are custom-made for each patient. After surgery, some of the antigens (proteins) from the tumor are removed. The antigens are then combined with T-cells (a type of immune cell) from the patient. Hopefully, the process teaches the T-cells to recognize the tumor antigens as foreign and attack and kill them. The “trained” T-cells are then given back to the patient. Ideally, the T-cells will help the immune system identify any stray brain tumor cells left in the body and prevent the tumor from coming back.

Animal studies showed lab rats with brain tumors that were treated with the vaccine lived longer than rats that were not treated; 25 percent of the treated rats showed complete eradication of the tumor.

Researchers have tested the brain tumor vaccine in small groups of humans with glioblastomas. Those trials found the vaccine to be safe with only minor side effects (fever, flu-like symptoms). Although the trials didn’t specifically look at efficacy, those who received the vaccine have survived two years or longer (roughly twice the average length of survival after traditional therapy). Investigators hope to soon begin a phase II study of the vaccine with several hundred patients.

Web Resources
For general information on brain tumors: