Best Glioblastoma Treatment in the India

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Best Glioblastoma Treatment in the India

  • Category

    Oncology

  • Published By

    GetWellGo Team

  • Updated on

    08-Apr-2025

Glioblastoma Treatment Options​

Glioblastoma (GBM) is a particularly malignant form of cancer that affects the brain tissue.
Management or treatment entails multidisciplinary approaches which aim at excision/ resection of the tumor, shrinking of the tumor as well as suppression of the tumor growth.

  • Surgery: Resection of as much of the tumor is feasible including the attempting to remove more than microscopic boundaries of the tumor (Maximal safe surgery).
  • Radiation therapy: It is given after the surgery to ensure any remaining tumor cells are eliminated.
  • Chemotherapy: It is used in combination with radiation treatment (called chemoradiation therapy) and then later used after treatment completion.
  • Tumor Treating Fields (TTF): A device that is worn on the body as it applies electric fields forustum cancer cell division.
  • Targeted Therapy and Immunotherapy (Clinical Trials): CAR-T cell therapy, Cancer vaccines (such as neoantigen vaccines) Checkpoint inhibitors like PD-1/PD-L1 blockers.
  • Supportive (Palliative) Care: It addresses the necessities of enhancement in the patient’s quality of life; it aims at easing symptoms such as Seizures, Swelling (edema), Headaches, weakness, and cognitive symptoms.

Glioblastoma Survival Rate​

Glioblastoma is a grade IV cancer and it has specifically short prognosis period because of its fast growth rate and aggressiveness.

Glioblastoma Prognosis

  • Median survival (with standard treatment): 14 to 18 months
  • 2-year survival rate: About 25%
  • 5-year survival rate: About 5–10%

Glioblastoma Immunotherapy

  • Immunotherapy is a form of cancer treatment that works by enhancing the patient’s immune system in order for it to act against individual cancer cells.
  • Immunotherapy on the other hand is relatively new area of research opened for the difficult to treat glioblastoma (GBM).

Types of Immunotherapy for Glioblastoma

  • Immune Checkpoint Inhibitors: Release antibodies to unblock immune cells to attack tumors (Examples: PD-1/PD L1 inhibitors: nivolumab).
  • Cancer Vaccines: The action of cancer vaccines can be defined as training the immune system to identify the GBM cells.
  • CAR-T Cell Therapy: The therapy involves manipulating patient’s T-cells towards targeting the specific marker of GBM
  • Oncolytic Virus Therapy: Convey to attack cancer cells specifically the GBM cells and also enhance the immune system.
  • Adaptive Cell Transfer: Introducing pluripotent endogenous cells in the patient’s body
  • Cytokine Therapy: The cytokine therapy is a treatment that aims at amplifying specific immune cell signals in the functioning of cancer cells.

Glioblastoma Chemotherapy​

  • Glioblastoma (GBM) patients are routinely given chemotherapy.
  • It is toxic and is used to target rapidly dividing cells but glioblastoma are hardly affected hence chemotherapy is always accompanied by surgery and radiation.

Standard Chemotherapy Protocol

Surgery ➔ Radiation + Temozolomide (6 weeks) ➔ Then 6 months of Temozolomide alone

This therapy that has been recognized as the standard therapy for newly diagnosed GBM around the world.

Glioblastoma Radiation Therapy​

Radiation treatment (also known as radiotherapy) employs beams of high-energy (such as X-rays) to destroy cells of glioblastoma (GBM) or to restrain their growth.
It's the central component of GBM therapy — always following surgery and also with chemotherapy.

Purpose of Radiation Therapy

  • Destroy remaining cancer cells after surgery
  • Shrink residual tumor
  • Suppress symptoms (such as headaches or seizures)
  • Delay death

Types of Radiation Treatment for Glioblastoma

  • External Beam Radiation Therapy (EBRT): Most common treatment; beams radiate tumor outside the body.
  • Intensity-Modulated Radiation Therapy (IMRT): Extremely accurate; molds beams to tumor shape/size.
  • Stereotactic Radiosurgery (SRS): Gives a single, high dose very accurately.
  • Proton Beam Therapy: Utilizes protons rather than X-rays; less damage to surrounding tissues.

Glioblastoma Surgery​

Surgery typically is the initial treatment of glioblastoma (GBM).
The objective is to cut out as much of the tumor as safely can — referred to as "maximal safe resection."

Since glioblastoma infiltrates into nearby brain tissue like little fingers, it is not possible to take out all the cells. However, surgery:

  • Shrinks tumor size
  • Relieves symptoms
  • Improves radiation and chemotherapy effectiveness

Main Types of Glioblastoma Surgery

Craniotomy

Open brain surgery to remove the tumor.

Awake Craniotomy

Patient stays awake to monitor speech, movement, etc.

Biopsy Only

Only a small piece is taken for diagnosis.

Advanced Surgical Techniques

These are used by modern neurosurgeons to enhance safety and accuracy:

  • Intraoperative MRI/CT: Brain scans in real time during surgery.
  • Fluorescence-guided surgery: Tumor cells glow pink when exposed to special dye (5-ALA) under blue light.
  • Neuro-navigation: GPS for the brain — assists the surgeon.
  • Functional brain mapping: Maps important brain regions (speech, movement) to preserve them.

Glioblastoma Recurrence​

Glioblastoma (GBM) nearly always returns — even following surgery, radiation, and chemotherapy.
Recurrence may occur months or years afterwards, typically adjacent to the original tumor site.

Why Glioblastoma Recur?

  • Infiltrative character: GBM disseminates small cancer cells far into the brain that surgery cannot completely eradicate.
  • Resistance: Certain tumor cells remain alive with radiation and chemo.
  • Blood-brain barrier: Prevents a significant amount of medicine from reaching the brain.

Glioblastoma Targeted Therapy​

Targeted therapy employs medications that target specific molecules responsible for cancer cell proliferation — as opposed to traditional chemotherapy, which targets all rapidly dividing cells.

In glioblastoma (GBM), targeted therapies are in development. Some exist, but most are on clinical trials.

Common Targets in Glioblastoma

  • VEGF (Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor) Aids tumors in making blood vessels (angiogenesis)
  • EGFR (Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor) Promotes tumor growth and survival
  • PDGFR (Platelet-derived Growth Factor Receptor) Aids cell growth
  • IDH1 Mutation Alters tumor metabolism
  • MGMT Methylation Affects response to chemotherapy

Glioblastoma Alternative Treatments​

Alternative therapies are treatments applied beyond conventional care such as surgery, radiation, and chemotherapy.
They are typically employed to augment traditional therapy, enhance quality of life, and manage symptoms.

Integrative and Natural Therapies

  • Medicinal Mushrooms
  • Cannabis
  • Turmeric Extract
  • Green Tea
  • Essential Oils

Mind-Body Therapies

  • Meditation
  • Yoga
  • Music Therapy
  • Art Therapy

Dietary Approaches

  • Ketogenic Diet
  • Anti-Inflammatory Diet

Experimental and Off-Label Therapies

  • Repurposed Drugs
  • Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy
  • Nutraceuticals

Glioblastoma Vaccine Trials​

Cancer vaccines operate differently than other vaccines — they don't protect against cancer but instead seek to educate the immune system to see and kill glioblastoma (GBM) cells.

In GBM, vaccines try to focus on specific proteins on the tumor and induce a vigorous immune response.

Types of Glioblastoma Vaccines in Trials

  • Peptide vaccines: Utilize small fragments of tumor proteins to induce immunity
  • Dendritic cell vaccines: Patient's own immune cells are treated with tumor antigens in the lab and reimplanted
  • mRNA vaccines: Similar to COVID-19 vaccines, provide instructions for the body to produce a tumor antigen-based immune response
  • Whole tumor cell vaccines: Utilize the patient's own tumor cells to make a personalized vaccine
  • Neoantigen vaccines: Attack highly personal mutations specific to each patient's tumor

Glioblastoma Treatment Guidelines​

Glioblastoma is a very aggressive brain cancer.
Treatment is designed to eliminate as much tumor as possible, reduce growth, and enhance quality of life.

International guidelines are grounded on recommendations by organizations such as:

  • NCCN (National Comprehensive Cancer Network)
  • EANO (European Association of Neuro-Oncology)
  • ASCO (American Society of Clinical Oncology)

Standard First Line Treatment

Surgery

  • Maximum safe resection of tumor
  • Take as much tumor out as possible without damaging healthy brain tissue

Radiation Therapy

  • External beam radiotherapy (usually 6 weeks)
  • Occurs within 3–6 weeks post-operatively

Chemotherapy

  • Oral chemotherapy Temozolomide (TMZ)
  • Administered concurrently with and after radiation (Stupp regimen)

Tumor-Treating Fields (TTF)

  • Portable device that applies low-level electric fields
  • May be added on after radiation + chemo

Glioblastoma Tumor Treating Fields​

Tumor Treating Fields (TTF) is a non-surgical, novel treatment for glioblastoma (GBM).
It applies low-intensity, alternating electric fields to interfere with cell division in cancer cells, slowing or halting tumor growth.

How TTF Works

  • Electric fields are supplied directly to the tumor site using adhesive patches on the scalp.
  • They disrupt the internal structures cancer cells need to multiply.
  • Regular brain cells are not significantly affected since they replicate very slowly relative to tumor cells.

Why Choose GetWellGo for Glioblastoma Treatment?

GetWellGo is regarded as a leading supplier of healthcare services. We help our foreign clients choose the best treatment locations that suit their needs both financially and medically.

We offer:

  • Complete transparency
  • Fair costs.
  • 24 hour availability.
  • Medical E-visas
  • Online consultation from recognized Indian experts.
  • Assistance in selecting India's top hospitals for glioblastoma treatment.
  • Expert neuro oncologist with a strong track record of success
  • Assistance during and after the course of treatment.
  • Language Support
  • Travel and Accommodation Services
  • Case manager assigned to every patient to provide seamless support in and out of the hospital like appointment booking
  • Local SIM Cards
  • Currency Exchange
  • Arranging Patient’s local food

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