Tyrosine kinase inhibitors - Potential for the treatment of primary brain tumours

Gliomas are the most common primary brain tumour diagnosed in adults. Gliob lastoma multiforme, the most aggressive grade of glioma, is the most freque nt. Despite current treatment with a combination of surgery, radiation and chemotherapy, median survival of patients with high-grade gliomas remains l ess than 1 year. Recent advances in understanding the molecular events leading to tumourigen esis have identified new targets for current and potential therapy. The tyr osine kinase receptors have been found to be overexpressed in most human ca ncers, including those of the CNS. In particular, activation of the recepto r subtypes for epidermal growth factor, platelet-derived growth factor and vascular endothelial growth factor has been shown to lead to an increase in cellular proliferation, angiogenesis and invasion. Agents and therapies wh ich block the activation of these receptors have been shown to inhibit vari ous neoplastic processes such as growth, invasion and angiogenesis, and may in the future become a routine component of the therapeutic armamentarium.