BRUSSELS, March 10 (UPI) -- A new chemotherapy procedure offers hope to brain tumor patients, medical researchers said Thursday.
The target is a very aggressive form of brain tumor known as heray chemoglioblastoma, a fast-moving and devastating cancer. Researchers found that the addition of another chemotherapy agent to radiation therapy increases survival in patients suffering from the cancer.
That agent is called temozolomide, or by the brand name of Temodal.
Further, molecular analyses of the tumor allowed for the identification of those patients most likely to benefit from this type of treatment.
The findings from this landmark test are said to be leading to a new standard of care for patients with chemoglioblastoma.
The study was conducted by the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer in collaboration with the National Cancer Institute of Canada Clinical Trials Group. The results are published in two companion papers in this week's edition of the New England Journal of Medicine.
Primary tumors originating in the brain account for less than 5 percent of all cancer diagnoses. However, brain cancer frequently affects previously healthy younger men and women in the middle of their most active life.
