Photodynamic Therapy for the Treatment of Glioblastoma
Samuel W. Cramer, Clark C. Chen
Abstract
Glioblastoma is the most common form of adult brain cancer and remains one of the deadliest of human cancers. The current standard-of-care involves maximal tumor resection followed by treatment with concurrent radiation therapy and the chemotherapy temozolomide. Recurrence after this therapy is nearly universal within 2 years of diagnosis. Notably, >80% of recurrence is found in the region adjacent to the resection cavity. The need for improved local control in this region, thus remains unmet. The FDA approval of 5-aminolevulinic acid (5-ALA) for fluorescence guided glioblastoma resection renewed interests in leveraging this agent as a means to administer photodynamic therapy (PDT). Here we review the general principles of PDT as well as the available literature on PDT as a glioblastoma therapeutic platform.