Glioblastoma is an aggressive incurable primary tumor of the central nervous system. Median overall survival is in the range of 1.5 years even in selected clinical trials populations. Many features contribute to this therapeutic challenge including high intratumoral and intertumoral heterogeneity, resistance to therapy, migration and invasion, immunosuppression. With the access of novel highthroughput technologies, significant progress has been made to understand molecular and immunological signatures underlying the pathology of glioblastoma. Clinical trial designs have shifted from investigating broad “one-for-all” treatment approaches to precision oncology designs. The collection of contributions in this book aim at providing researchers and clinicians an update on different aspects of glioblastoma, i.e. progress in basic, preclinical and clinical research.

Glioblastoma is an aggressive incurable primary tumor of the central nervous system. Median overall survival is in the range of 1.5 years even in selected clinical trials populations. Many features contribute to this therapeutic challenge including high intratumoral and intertumoral heterogeneity, resistance to therapy, migration and invasion, immunosuppression. With the access of novel highthroughput technologies, significant progress has been made to understand molecular and immunological signatures underlying the pathology of glioblastoma. Clinical trial designs have shifted from investigating broad “one-for-all” treatment approaches to precision oncology designs. The collection of contributions in this book aim at providing researchers and clinicians an update on different aspects of glioblastoma, i.e. progress in basic, preclinical and clinical research.

This book is a compilation of articles that brings together current knowledge from an international team of contributors who are dedicated investigators exploring novel strategies for the treatment of glioblastoma. These articles describe some of the latest concepts that will provide students, researchers and clinicians with an overview of the therapeutic approaches being developed in the field of neuro-oncology to combat this deadly disease.

This volume provides a balanced and realistic review of the current state of glioblastoma, ranging from traditional histological review, molecular pathology of glioma, modern radiomics, neurosurgical focus, and integration of treatment plans by neuro-oncologists. The book reviews basic principles such as epidemiology and etiology, and modern 2016 WHO classification of CNS tumors. Chapters cover a general overview of common molecular techniques used in molecular pathology, molecular pathology in a developing country, key drivers of patient outcomes and predictors of response to radiation and/or chemotherapy treatment, and immunohistochemical surrogates for key molecular pathology. It concludes with reviews on radiomics, animal and stem cell models of glioblastoma, and a chapter on the emerging field of Glioblastoma Neuroscience. Precision Molecular Pathology of Glioblastoma is intended for pathology residents and fellows interested in glioblastoma, general surgical pathologists who need reviews on how to implement modern glioblastoma classification, as well as neuro-radiologists, oncologists, and radiation oncologists needing a holistic perspective to glioblastoma diagnosis and management.

Non-thermal irreversible electroporation is a new minimally invasive surgical p- cedure with unique molecular selectivity attributes – in fact it may be considered the first clinical molecular surgery procedure. Non-thermal irreversible electro- ration is a molecular selective mode of cell ablation that employs brief electrical fields to produce nanoscale defects in the cell membrane, which can lead to cell death, without an effect on any of the other tissue molecules. The electrical fields can be produced through contact by insertion of electrode needles around the undesirable tissue and non-invasively by electromagnetic induction. This new - dition to the medical armamentarium requires the active involvement and is of interest to clinical physicians, medical researchers, mechanical engineers, che- cal engineers, electrical engineers, instrumentation designers, medical companies and many other fields and disciplines that were never exposed in their training to irreversible electroporation or to a similar concept. This edited book is designed to be a comprehensive introduction to the field of irreversible electroporation to those that were not exposed or trained in the field before and can also serve as a reference manual. Irreversible electroporation is broad and interdisciplinary. Therefore, we have made an attempt to cover every one of the various aspects of the field from an introductory basic level to state of the art.

Cancer cell biology research in general, and anti-cancer drug development specifically, still relies on standard cell culture techniques that place the cells in an unnatural environment. As a consequence, growing tumor cells in plastic dishes places a selective pressure that substantially alters their original molecular and phenotypic properties.The emerging field of regenerative medicine has developed bioengineered tissue platforms that can better mimic the structure and cellular heterogeneity of in vivo tissue, and are suitable for tumor bioengineering research. Microengineering technologies have resulted in advanced methods for creating and culturing 3-D human tissue. By encapsulating the respective cell type or combining several cell types to form tissues, these model organs can be viable for longer periods of time and are cultured to develop functional properties similar to native tissues. This approach recapitulates the dynamic role of cell–cell, cell–ECM, and mechanical interactions inside the tumor. Further incorporation of cells representative of the tumor stroma, such as endothelial cells (EC) and tumor fibroblasts, can mimic the in vivo tumor microenvironment. Collectively, bioengineered tumors create an important resource for the in vitro study of tumor growth in 3D including tumor biomechanics and the effects of anti-cancer drugs on 3D tumor tissue. These technologies have the potential to overcome current limitations to genetic and histological tumor classification and development of personalized therapies.

This volume provides a comprehensive overview of recent developments in magnetic particle imaging (MPI), a novel imaging modality. Using various static and oscillating magnetic fields, and tracer materials made from iron oxide nanoparticles, MPI can perform background-free measurements of the particles’ local concentration. The method exploits the nonlinear remagnetization behavior of the particles and has the potential to surpass current methods for the detection of iron oxide in terms of sensitivity and spatiotemporal resolution. Starting from an introduction to the technology, the topics addressed include setting up an imaging device, assessment of image quality, development of new MPI tracer materials, and the first preclinical results. This is the first book to be published on magnetic particle imaging, and it will be an invaluable source of information for everyone with an interest in this exciting new modality.

Glioblastoma (GBM) is a common and aggressive brain cancer with features of necrosis and endothelial proliferation in the histopathologic examination. Its presentation and management depend on tumor location, size, grade, and underlying histopathological characteristics. GBM tumors have clinical features of increased intracranial pressure, focal neurological deficits, or seizures (generalized or partial) with rapid progression. This book discusses GBM and its diagnosis, treatment, and management.

Genetic alterations in cancer, in addition to being the fundamental drivers of tumorigenesis, can give rise to a variety of metabolic adaptations that allow cancer cells to survive and proliferate in diverse tumor microenvironments. This metabolic flexibility is different from normal cellular metabolic processes and leads to heterogeneity in cancer metabolism within the same cancer type or even within the same tumor. In this book, we delve into the complexity and diversity of cancer metabolism, and highlight how understanding the heterogeneity of cancer metabolism is fundamental to the development of effective metabolism-based therapeutic strategies. Deciphering how cancer cells utilize various nutrient resources will enable clinicians and researchers to pair specific chemotherapeutic agents with patients who are most likely to respond with positive outcomes, allowing for more cost-effective and personalized cancer therapeutic strategies.