Gene Therapy for Brain Tumors-Clinical Results from Experimental Protocols

ABSTRACT

-Gene therapy has emerged from the laboratory into clinical practice in neurosurgery over the past decade. However, impressive successes in the laboratory have yet to be translated into a clinical setting. Recent clinical trials using either a retroviral or adenoviral transfection with the herpes simplex virus thymidine kinase gene have shown these systems to be safe; however, long-term cures have been infrequent and reoperations have shown that transfection rates are low.

In this article we review the status of clinical trials of gene therapy for brain tumors and then focus on how the success of gene therapy will be maximized in the next group of trials. Specifically, we address mechanisms to increase transfection rates, improve drug delivery, reduce toxicity, and expand the genes targeted.

KEYWORD

Gene therapy - brain tumors - clinical trials