Author(s)

Zhining Zhang, Yutong Geng, Qinzhe Hu

Corresponding Author

Zhining Zhang

ABSTRACT

Glioma is the most common primary central nervous system tumor. Median survival rates are extremely low even with aggressive treatment using surgery, radiation, and chemotherapy. Temozolomide (TMZ), a triazene analog of dacarbazine, has antitumor activity and a good safety profile in malignant gliomas. However, there is an inevitable presence of resistance to TMZ for the treatment of glioma due to the enhancement of DNA damage repair proteins within the tumor. In contrast, the combination of TMZ and other drugs in adjuvant and TMZ immunotherapy can effectively reduce drug resistance. This literature provides an updated overview of the contribution and progress of the most recent cutting-edge new drug development to the adjuvant therapy of TMZ based on the mechanism of action in glioma and a summary of the results of clinical trials of TMZ in combination treatment. Finally, we conclude the article by exploring the TMZ immunotherapy as a new experimental therapy, providing an outlook on the new frontier of future treatment of glioma.

KEYWORDS

Temozolomide (TMZ), Glioma, Clinical trials, Immunotherapy