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Research Article

Tumor treating fields: a new treatment for glioblastoma

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Pages 58-63 | Received 15 Jun 2022, Accepted 02 Dec 2022, Published online: 09 Jan 2023
 

Abstract

Glioblastoma (GBM) is a fatal type of brain tumour. According to the World Health Organization (WHO) classification of 2021, GBMs have WHO grade 4 and are usually associated with a poor prognosis. Since GBMs show a pronounced infiltrative growth, a cure by complete resection of the tumor is unfortunately not possible. Both systemic and locoregional therapy methods are traditionally used and tested to improve the prognosis. A new method that is intended to prolong the progression-free survival is using electromagnetic alternating fields, the so-called tumor treating fields (TTF). This method is based on alternating electrical fields that act on the shaved scalp. The aim is to disrupt cell division and organization of cell organelles. In this review, we discuss the mechanism of TTF, summarize the results of our comprehensive literature search, and discuss potential of this new anti-cancer treatment modality.

Authors’ contributions

Conceptualization D.S., A.H. and S.S.; writing—original draft preparation D.S. and S.S.; writing—review and editing D.S., A.H. and S.S.; visualization D.S. and S.S.; supervision A.H. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Data availability statement

The authors confirm that the data supporting the findings of this study is available within the article.

Funding

The author(s) reported there is no funding associated with the work featured in this article.