[02 August 2021] The IBTA’s monthly e-News has been released and has emailed to all subscribers. To sign up to receive your copy, click here.
You can also read the IBTA e-News July 2021 edition in full online here.
Some of the highlights from this month’s round-up:
- A summary has been published in the journal Neuro-Oncology of the World Health Organisation’s fifth edition of its Classification of Tumours of the Central Nervous System (‘WHO CNS5’), due for publication later this year in its entirety.
- Although meningiomas are the most common type of intracranial primary brain tumour, there is wide variation in how they are treated across the world. In light of recent advances in molecular genetics and clinical trial results, the European Association of Neuro-Oncology (EANO) has updated its recommendations for the diagnosis and treatment of meningiomas.
- Results of a phase 3 clinical trial published in JAMA Oncology have shown that survival can be improved for children with high-risk group 3 medulloblastoma by giving the chemotherapy drug carboplatin alongside radiotherapy.
- A study published in EMBO Molecular Medicine has demonstrated how it may be possible to test for a malignant brain tumour with a blood test or urine sample by detecting traces of DNA fragments that have been shed from the tumour (known as ‘cell free tumour DNA’ or cftDNA).
- According to work published in Nature Communcations, a type of stem cell normally in the bone marrow can be found within glioblastoma tumours, and that these cells appear to accelerate tumour growth. Termed hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells (HSPCs), these special cells can produce any kind of blood cell, replacing those which are damaged or dead, and are rarely seen outside of the bone marrow.
- Published in the journal Cancer Research and Treatment, an analysis of data from a phase 3 clinical trial (KNOG-1101) in South Korea, which was comparing treatments in newly-diagnosed grade 3 anaplastic astrocytoma (without the genetic feature of 1p/19q co-deletion), has found that the addition of temozolomide chemotherapy both during and after radiotherapy did not worsen health-related quality of life.Kiyatec has announced that it is to make its 3D Predict Glioma test® available to clinicians outside of its ongoing 3D-PREDICT clinical study. Coinciding with Glioblastoma Awareness Day on 21 July, this announcement follows the recent publication of data which demonstrated that the test was able to accurately predict whether treatments would be effective for individual patients who had newly diagnosed high grade glioma.
- SNOSSA, a society that was formed to improve the outcomes of patients with brain and spinal tumours in the Sub-Saharan African region, has announced that their 4th annual conference will take place virtually as a series of two webinars on Saturday, 14th and Sunday, 15th August 2021 at 3:00 pm EAT (Eastern Africa Time). Registration is free. For details please email Dr Joyce Kambugu at jbkambugu@gmail.com, and include your name, discipline, institution, city and country.
Our monthly e-News highlights items of interest to our international brain tumour community and is emailed to approximately 6,000 recipients. It gives a round-up of the latest research and treatment developments, news about brain tumour patient organisations around the world, and key forthcoming neuro-oncology scientific and patient conferences. You can sign up to receive the e-News every month by registering here.
To see an archive of existing e-News issues, click here.
