Drugs of great promise are being developed to treat brain tumors, offering a new source of hope for adult and pediatric brain tumor patients.

Chemotherapy

Chemotherapy, in the form of oral drugs, injections, or dissolving wafers placed inside the brain, may be used to kill additional cancer cells after surgery and radiation therapy, especially for high grade tumors. Chemotherapy is usually an outpatient procedure.

Current research at the Duke Cancer Institute focuses on the mechanisms by which tumors become resistant to chemotherapy and ways to reverse this resistance, such as 06BG administered with temozolomide.

Immunotherapy

Always at the forefront of cancer research, the Duke Cancer Institute and the Preston Robert Tisch Brain Tumor Center at Duke are presently treating several types of brain cancer with immunotherapy techniques that are designed to fight the malignant brain tumor cells while sparing normal brain cells.

The Duke Cancer Institute is also creating genetically engineered cancer vaccines. These may be one of the many treatment options with which your cancer care team will present you, thanks to Duke's strong commitment to bringing experimental therapies out of the laboratory and into clinical use.

Several clinical trials are in progress.

Appointments

Learn how to make an appointment with the Duke Cancer Institute.