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Novel Challenges and Advances in Neuro-Oncology
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Novel Challenges and Advances in Neuro-Oncology

A special issue of Journal of Personalized Medicine (ISSN 2075-4426). This special issue belongs to the section "Personalized Therapy in Clinical Medicine".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 September 2026 | Viewed by 3279

Editors

Prof. Dr. Keyoumars Ashkan

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
King’s College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, London SE5 9RS, UK
Interests: new and novel therapies for brain tumours; immunotherapy; imaging of tumours; tumour genomics; patient reported outcome measures
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. José Pedro Lavrador

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
King's College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, London SE5 9RS, UK
Interests: neuro-oncology; preoperative brain mapping; tractography; navigated transcranial magnetic stimulation; functional MRI; intraoperative brain mapping; postsurgical rehabilitation; connectomics
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The neuro-oncology field has witnessed significant developments in recent years. New perioperative mapping techniques improved our understanding about the human brain. The advances in basic sciences further enlightened the tumour–brain interactions, providing rational tools to adapt personalized surgical resections. Intraoperative diagnostics empower surgical teams to establish risk-benefit decision flowcharts when tailoring patient-centred extent of resections. Emerging rehabilitation programs centred on patient-specific brain stimulation improve motor and cognitive outcomes, improving quality of life and reducing time-to-adjuvant treatment when required. Adjuvant treatments beyond surgery have diversified and significantly improved oncological and functional outcomes, being responsible for a true revolution in the field.

However, as we move on with diagnostics and treatments, new challenges arise that were previously unforeseen. Improving targeted sampling and focused treatments with fewer side effects for patients remains the target, and this is being pushed forward by the mentioned recent advances. Aiming for disease control and cure is probably not yet on the horizon for most of the conditions in neuro-oncology, but they remain goals to achieve, and small steps will lead the way.

This launches this necessary topic focused on “Novel Challenges and Advances in Neuro-Oncology”. We invite you to submit your work to this topic so we can contribute and summarize recent developments in the field and help to pave the way for future advances.

Prof. Dr. Keyoumars Ashkan
Dr. José Pedro Lavrador
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-anonymized peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Journal of Personalized Medicine is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • neuro-oncology
  • brain mapping
  • personalized surgical resections
  • radiotherapy
  • proton therapy
  • chemotherapy
  • immunotherapy
  • tumour-brain interaction
  • flourescence-guided surgery
  • intraoperative treatments
  • postoperative rehabilitation
  • engenieering and neuro-oncology

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Published Papers (3 papers)

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Review

19 pages, 2916 KB  
Review
Neuromodulation in Neuro-Oncology: A Scoping Review
by Ahmad I. Kamaludin, Ashwin Kumaria and Keyoumars Ashkan
J. Pers. Med. 2026, 16(7), 349; https://doi.org/10.3390/jpm16070349 - 28 Jun 2026
Viewed by 699
Abstract
Background: Neuromodulation is a rapidly developing field with growing interest in its application in neuro-oncology, particularly since the publication of the EF-14 trial which demonstrated a survival benefit conferred by tumour treating fields (TTF) in patients with glioblastoma. In addition, the emerging field [...] Read more.
Background: Neuromodulation is a rapidly developing field with growing interest in its application in neuro-oncology, particularly since the publication of the EF-14 trial which demonstrated a survival benefit conferred by tumour treating fields (TTF) in patients with glioblastoma. In addition, the emerging field of cancer neuroscience has postulated the role of neural–tumour communication in tumour aetiology, which is theoretically targetable by neuromodulation strategies. This scoping review therefore aims to comprehensively evaluate current or future applications of neuromodulation in managing patients with brain tumours, encompassing preclinical and clinical studies. Methods: The MEDLINE database was queried for all relevant articles from inception to 1 December 2024. A synthesis of findings was performed, broadly categorised to preclinical and clinical research. Findings: The database search returned 3296 results, from which 187 full-text articles were further assessed. A total of 79 studies met the inclusion and exclusion criteria and were included. The results from preclinical studies (n = 18) were stratified according to modality which included electrical therapy, electroporation, electromagnetic field (EMF) and deep brain stimulation (DBS). Similarly, clinical studies (n = 61) were classified to preoperative modalities such as transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) and transcranial direct stimulation (tDCS), and postoperative modalities such as TMS, TTF, EMF and spinal cord stimulation (SCS). Interpretation: The application of neuromodulation as adjunctive therapy in the context of neuro-oncology is an emerging field, with encouraging results in various modalities across a wide range of applications from surgical planning and functional rehabilitation, to its therapeutic potential. Further research is urgently needed to harness the potential of neuromodulation in improving patient outcomes. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Novel Challenges and Advances in Neuro-Oncology)
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18 pages, 503 KB  
Review
Immune Cell Therapy Promises More Effective Cure for Medulloblastoma
by Marco Agostini, Pietro Traldi and Mahmoud Hamdan
J. Pers. Med. 2026, 16(6), 326; https://doi.org/10.3390/jpm16060326 - 18 Jun 2026
Viewed by 810
Abstract
Medulloblastoma is one of the most prevalent pediatric brain tumors. Currently, existing therapies for this devastating type of cancer can only prolong survival time with severe side-effects and relapse. These therapies are not curative for almost a third of treated patients, while most [...] Read more.
Medulloblastoma is one of the most prevalent pediatric brain tumors. Currently, existing therapies for this devastating type of cancer can only prolong survival time with severe side-effects and relapse. These therapies are not curative for almost a third of treated patients, while most survivors are condemned to a poor quality of life. The addition of immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) to immune therapy has given some hope to those suffering from this type of cancer. Although ICIs provide a valuable contribution to immunotherapy, the exploitation of immune checkpoint inhibition within existing therapeutic strategies to cure Medulloblastoma remains understudied. However, the identification of the main molecular subgroups of medulloblastoma is considered one of the success stories of oncology. This advancement in molecular profiling of MB paved the way to subgroup-directed clinical trials, which may lead to efficacious immune-targeted therapy. However, this relatively new development is still hampered by a substantial biological heterogeneity of the disease and the absence of a full understanding of the various mechanisms behind its resistance to existing therapeutic modalities. The inclusion of chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T and CAR NK cell therapy within various therapeutic strategies and ongoing clinical trials has given fresh hope those suffering from this fatal disease. However, ongoing clinical trials suggest that this highly promising therapy can be impaired by a number of serious limitations, including cytokine release syndrome, Graft-versus-host disease, the scarcity of target antigens, and severe adverse events. Some of the ongoing clinical trials also suggest that CAR NK is less prone to some of these limitations. This review also highlights the contribution of mass spectrometry-based proteomics, and the increasing role of liquid biopsy rather than tissue biopsy. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Novel Challenges and Advances in Neuro-Oncology)
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Figure 1

20 pages, 286 KB  
Review
Targeted and Personalized Therapy for Difficult Benign Brain Tumors: A Review
by Polina Chliapnikov and Mark Bernstein
J. Pers. Med. 2026, 16(3), 170; https://doi.org/10.3390/jpm16030170 - 21 Mar 2026
Viewed by 1305
Abstract
Background: Difficult benign intracranial tumors (including meningiomas, schwannomas, neurofibromatosis-related tumors, and pituitary neuroendocrine tumors) have substantial morbidity in patients. Due to their limited treatment options, there is a need for individualized treatment beyond histological and surgical approaches. Objective: To summarize how novel treatment [...] Read more.
Background: Difficult benign intracranial tumors (including meningiomas, schwannomas, neurofibromatosis-related tumors, and pituitary neuroendocrine tumors) have substantial morbidity in patients. Due to their limited treatment options, there is a need for individualized treatment beyond histological and surgical approaches. Objective: To summarize how novel treatment innovations have been implemented for these tumors, meningiomas and schwannomas are prioritized, followed by NF-associated neoplasms, and then pituitary neuroendocrine tumors in comparison to low-grade gliomas. Methods: We summarize the current knowledge relating to targeted therapies for gliomas, meningiomas, schwannomas, neurofibromatosis (NF) tumors, and pituitary neuroendocrine tumors to investigate an individual’s treatment options for difficult benign brain tumors. This review synthesizes evidence on tumor genomics and molecular markers, supported by methylation-based classification, immunohistochemistry, and functional assays, emphasizing current clinical applications. Evidence Synthesis: The recent data show that DNA methylation-based models can predict post-surgical outcomes and radiotherapy responses, enabling risk stratification and radiotherapy benefit prediction. Early signals support target-directed treatment, including cMET blockade that radiosensitizes NF2 schwannoma models, brigatinib-associated tumor shrinkage in NF2-deficient models, and PitNET organoid data. Conclusions: We support clinical decision-making that utilizes molecular profiling with functional testing to guide targeted treatment. We also identify evidence gaps such as biomarker-defined prospective trials that are needed for broader clinical implementation. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Novel Challenges and Advances in Neuro-Oncology)
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