A muscle relaxant drug plus immune therapy shrank brain tumors in mice
Original title: GABAergic Circuit Activation Induces a Therapeutically Responsive State for anti-PD-L1 Immunotherapy in Glioblastoma
How far along is this research?
This is a preprint. Other scientists have not checked it yet, so treat it as an early signal rather than an answer.
This was only done in mice, plus a look at cells from people.
The short version
In mice with brain tumors, an old muscle relaxant helped an immune drug work much better.
What was studied. Researchers gave mice with brain tumors a drug called baclofen, which calms nerve signals. They tested it alone and together with an immune drug called anti-PD-L1. They also looked at brain cells from people with glioblastoma: The fastest-growing type of glioma (grade 4). Treatment usually starts soon after diagnosis: surgery first, then radiation and chemotherapy. See the glossary.
What they found. Baclofen alone did not help the mice live longer. Baclofen plus the immune drug got rid of the tumor completely in 66% of the mice. Those mice also lived longer, and the tumor did not come back when the researchers tried to start a new one.
What this means, and what it doesn't
What it could mean: This points to a new idea: calming certain nerve signals in the brain may help immune drugs fight glioblastoma: The fastest-growing type of glioma (grade 4). Treatment usually starts soon after diagnosis: surgery first, then radiation and chemotherapy. See the glossary. Baclofen is already used in people for other reasons. But this work was done in mice, so no one knows yet if it helps people.
What it doesn't mean: This does not mean there is a new treatment for glioblastoma: The fastest-growing type of glioma (grade 4). Treatment usually starts soon after diagnosis: surgery first, then radiation and chemotherapy. See the glossary. The work was done in mice, not people. It is not a cure, and it is not a promise of one. No one has shown this combination is safe or helpful for patients. Do not ask for baclofen with an immune drug based on this study. It is many years and many trials away from everyday care, if it ever gets there.
Source: bioRxiv (preprint), August 27, 2026 · Read the original
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