Results of treatment of 112 cases of primary CNS lymphoma.

Background: Chemotherapy with or without radiotherapy is the mainstay of treatment for primary central nervous system lymphoma (PCNSL). High-dose methotrexate (MTX) is the most effective drug available to treat these lesions, either as a single agent or in combination with other drugs. Due to the lack of well-conducted randomized trials, the optimal treatment remains controversial.

Stereotactic radiofrequency thermocoagulation for hypothalamic hamartoma with intractable gelastic seizures.

Management of hypothalamic hamartoma with intractable gelastic epilepsy remains controversial. We have used stereotactic thermocoagulation for treatment of hypothalamic hamartoma with intractable gelastic epilepsy since 1997. Herein, we review our experience in five cases to clarify the usefulness of this treatment.

Expression level of ECT2 proto-oncogene correlates with prognosis in glioma patients.

The ECT2 (epithelial cell transforming sequence 2) proto-oncogene encodes a guanine nucleotide exchange factor for Rho GTPases, and regulates cytokinesis. ECT2 plays a critical role in Rho activation during cytokinesis, and thus may play a role in the pathogenesis of glioma. In this study, we investigated relationships between ECT2 expression, tumor histology, and prognosis in glioma patients.

Clinical evaluation of dendritic cell vaccination for patients with recurrent glioma: results of a clinical phase I/II trial.

Purpose: To investigate the safety and the immunologic and clinical responses of dendritic cell therapy for patients with recurrent malignant glioma.

Experimental Design: Twenty-four patients with recurrent malignant glioma (6 grade 3 and 18 grade 4 patients) were evaluated in a phase I/II clinical study of dendritic cell therapy. All patients were resistant to the standard maximum therapy.

[Dendritic cell therapy for malignant glioma].

Despite advances in radiation and chemotherapy along with surgical resectioning, the prognosis of patients with malignant glioma is poor. Among the new treatments currently being investigated for malignant glioma, immunotherapy is theoretically very attractive, since it offers the potential for high tumor-specific cytotoxicity. There are increasing reports demonstrating that systemic immunotherapy using dendritic cells is capable of inducing an antiglioma response.

Tumor mRNA-loaded dendritic cells elicit tumor-specific CD8(+) cytotoxic T cells in patients with malignant glioma.

In this study, we demonstrate that tumor mRNA-loaded dendritic cells can elicit a specific CD8(+) cytotoxic T-lymphocyte (CTL) response against autologous tumor cells in patients with malignant glioma. CTLs from three patients expressed strong cytolytic activity against autologous glioma cells, did not lyse autologous lymphoblasts or EBV-transformed cell lines, and were variably cytotoxic against the NK-sensitive cell line K-562. Also, DCs-pulsed normal brain mRNA failed to induce cytolytic activity against autologous glioma cells, suggesting the lack of autoimmune response.

Dendritic cell-based glioma immunotherapy (review).

Despite advances in radiation and chemotherapy along with surgical resectioning, the prognosis of patients with malignant glioma is poor. Among the new treatments currently being investigated for malignant glioma, immunotherapy is theoretically very attractive, since it offers the potential for high tumor-specific cytotoxicity. There are increasing reports demonstrating that systemic immunotherapy using dendritic cells is capable of inducing an antiglioma response.