Latest News

• Copayment assistance program is now open!        

  Our brain tumor copayment assistance program is now open to new and renewal patients. This program can help cover copay costs for: Optune Gio, Avastin, Temodar, Lomustine, and Modeyso, as well as their generics. If you think you may need help, apply ASAP as the program often closes quickly due to high demand. Go to braintumorcopays.org for details and to apply!  

  
  
• Brain Scans Miss Hidden Tumor Spread, Landmark Glioma Imaging Trial Reveals        

  In a recent prospective pilot study, published in the Journal of Neuro-Oncology, researchers compared MRI-based and FET-PET/MRI-based radiation target volumes in 30 patients with newly diagnosed high-grade gliomas. Contrast-enhanced MRI highlights areas where the blood-brain barrier is disrupted, while FET-PET uses a radioactive amino acid tracer to identify areas of increased amino acid transport associated with glioma, potentially revealing tumor beyond the areas of contrast enhancement. FET-PET/MRI identified significantly larger target volumes, with discrepancies between the radiation approaches in more than half of patients. The findings suggest that FET-PET may help refine radiation target planning, but whether this improves outcomes remains uncertain. In another randomized trial in Europe (the GLIAA trial), published earlier this year in The Lancet Oncology, FET-PET-guided re-irradiation did not significantly improve progression-free or overall survival compared with contrast-enhanced MRI-guided re-irradiation in patients with recurrent glioblastoma. These findings highlight the urgent need for more research to determine which patients and treatment settings may benefit from FET-PET-guided planning.

  
  
• EGFR-targeted antibody-toxin conjugate in recurrent glioma: a phase 1 trial        

  This Duke phase 1 trial evaluated D2C7, an experimental therapy that targets EGFR and EGFRvIII proteins on glioma cells and delivers a toxin intended to kill them. The treatment was delivered directly into the tumor through convection-enhanced delivery (CED) and resulted in a median overall survival of 7.9 months among 72 patients with recurrent glioblastoma. Treatment-related side effects were mild to moderate, and exploratory analyses identified biomarkers associated with longer survival in some patients.

  While this initial study was meant only to establish safety and dosing, Duke has already expanded on this work and is currently testing D2C7 together with 2141-V11, an experimental immune-stimulating anti-CD40 antibody. In a November 2025 conference abstract reporting preliminary results from 27 recurrent glioblastoma patients, median survival was 16.4 months with the combination approach. Treatment included a single convection-enhanced delivery treatment course with both agents, followed by repeated subcutaneous injections of 2141-V11 near the lymph nodes in the neck. No treatment-related grade 4 or 5 adverse events were reported. These early findings are encouraging, and we are eager to learn further results from the combined approach.