GRAPHENE IN NEUROSURGERY: A POTENTIAL AND INNOVATIVE STRATEGY IN THE TREATMENT OF CEREBRAL GLIOMAS

Gliomas account for around 45% of primary brain tumors. The treatment of malignant gliomas depend on the person’s age, the type of tumor, and the location of the tumor. These tumors tend to grow into the normal brain tissue, with the result that complete surgical removal can be very difficult to reach. Current therapy is unsatisfactory due to low therapeutic efficiencyand strong systemic side effects of chemo- and/or radiotherapy protocols. The standard protocol includes maximal surgical resection with postoperative combination of radiation therapy with concomitant and adjuvant chemotherapy. Surgical treatment represents the first initial treatment. However,in spite of the recent innovations in surgical techniques, including intraoperative mapping, we only got a slight improvement of the prognosis. Additionally, radiation therapy is also used to treat gliomas in locations where surgery is not safe and for recurrent gliomas. Chemotherapy is recom-Chemotherapy is recommended for some high-grade gliomas after surgery and radiation therapy. The presence of the blood-brain barrier impedes the passage of a large number of molecules into the brain. However, most of the current drugs show limited solubility, high toxicity and have a nonspecific delivery. Targeted drugs delivery systems can convey drugs more effectively and increase patient compliance. Recent advances in molecular and biological techniques have evidence new glioma-associated biomarkers and their implications for gliomas progression. The possibility to block contemporary more pathways into glioma by molecular-based targeted approaches, using a nanocarrier loaded with anticancer agent, represent a promising therapeutics strategy. Nanomedicine holds great promise for evolutionizing medical treatments, imaging and drug delivery. Nanoparticles provide better penetration of therapeutic agents and a reduced risk in comparison to conventional treatments. By using nanotechnology it is possible to deliver the drug to the targeted tissue across the blood-brain barrier and release the drug at a controlled rate. Graphene is a versatile two-dimensional nanomaterial thanks to its unique physical and chemical characteristics. Numerous experimental studies have also been made to employ graphene as a vehicle for antitumoral therapies. We think that, using the intrinsic capacity of graphene, should be very interesting to structure a new nanoparticle-based molecular approach against a carrier loaded with an antisense molecule against hypoxic ischemic factor-1α (HIF-1 α) and IL-8. However, there is currently no definitive study regarding the therapeutic potentialities or risks of graphene nanoparticles. They offer many opportunities for cancer therapy, but their interaction with biological tissues has not yet been fully elucidated.