A nerve cell protein may help glioblastoma come back
Original title: RBFOX3 is associated with neuronal-like phenotypic transition in recurrent glioblastoma.
How far along is this research?
- Lab cells
- Animals
- Review
- Tested in people
This was done on cells in a lab, not in people. It is a very early step.
This was lab work with gene data and cells in dishes, not a test in people.
The short version
Early lab work points to one protein that may help glioblastoma: A glioma that is given grade 4. Grade 4 is the highest grade there is. The tumor grows fast. Treatment usually starts soon after it is found. It often means surgery, and then radiation and chemotherapy. See the glossary resist chemo when it returns.
What was studied. Researchers took a second look at gene data from glioblastoma: A glioma that is given grade 4. Grade 4 is the highest grade there is. The tumor grows fast. Treatment usually starts soon after it is found. It often means surgery, and then radiation and chemotherapy. See the glossary tumors, using pairs from the first tumor and the one that came back. They then tested tumor cells in dishes, including cells grown next to nerve cells.
What they found. Some tumors that came back acted more like nerve cells, and these tumors also resisted chemo. The tumor cells appeared to sit very close to nearby nerve cells and connect with them. A nerve cell protein called RBFOX3 pushed tumor cells toward this nerve-like state.
What this means, and what it doesn't
What it could mean: Nothing about care changes today. This offers a possible reason why some glioblastomas return and stop responding to chemo. It gives researchers a new target to study.
What it doesn't mean: This does not mean a new treatment. The work was done with gene data and cells in dishes, not in people. No drug was tested, and this is not a cure. Any help for patients, if it comes at all, is many years off.
Source: PubMed, July 24, 2026 · Read the original
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