MEPhI specialists as part of a group of Russian scientists have developed a method for treating an aggressive form of cancer - glioblastoma. This was announced by the head of the department "Laser micro-, nano- and biotechnologies" of the Institute of Engineering Physics for Biomedicine (PhysBio) of the MEPhI, Professor Viktor Loschenov. The results of the work wre published in the journal Bioengineering.

Glioblastoma is one of the most aggressive brain tumors. The tumor has no clear boundaries, and the treatment does not guarantee that after the removal of the neoplasm, cancerous foci will not begin to appear again. Most patients die within 12-18 months.

The authors of the work used photodynamic therapy technologies for treatment: photosensitizer drugs introduced into the body, which increase the sensitivity of body tissues to light, neutralized cancer cells under the action of laser radiation. They are based on two Russian drugs - 5-aminolevulinic acid (5-ALA) and a derivative of chlorin E6.

"We have developed a special device that allows us to irradiate <...> the area around the removed fragment, which can again become a cancer focus. For therapy, we used not one, but two different photosensitizing drugs, the combination of which made it possible to effectively prevent the secondary manifestation of the disease. At the moment 10 people are undergoing treatment. The life expectancy of the first patient is already 28 months," Loshchenov said.

Scientists have selected therapy based on observations of the development of glioblastoma. They took into account the role of macrophage and microglial cells, which normally have to fight cancer cells, but under certain circumstances, they begin to protect cancer cells and help tumors grow.

"We assumed that monocytes enter the central nervous system from the circulatory system and, turning into macrophages, participate in tumor development. Therefore, we considered that, in addition to microglia, it is necessary to fight tumor-associated macrophages. For these purposes, a second drug was used, which affects the vessels of a brain tumor," the scientist explained, adding that the method of therapy is ready for implementation in Russian clinics.

The treatment of a group of patients was carried out by doctors of the Moscow State University of Medicine and Dentistry named after A. I. Evdokimov.