An overview of focused ultrasound as a treatment option for gliomas.

Abstract

Introduction: High-grade gliomas remain difficult to treat due to their infiltrative growth, therapeutic resistance, and the restrictive blood-brain barrier (BBB). Focused ultrasound (FUS) offers a noninvasive method to transiently disrupt the BBB, enhancing the delivery of therapeutics to the tumor site.

Areas covered: Herein, the authors discuss the emerging role of FUS in glioma treatment including enhanced drug delivery, real-time monitoring techniques, and biomarker-driven patient selection. They also explore the impact of combined FUS with immunotherapy, gene therapy, exosome-based drug delivery, sonobiopsy, and radiotherapy (RT) sensitization. The authors have based their article on literature published between January 2010 and October 2024 from PubMed, Web of Science, and Google Scholar. By tailoring FUS parameters to individual tumor characteristics and patient responses, these strategies aim to overcome glioma heterogeneity and treatment resistance, further advancing personalized therapeutic approaches.

Expert opinion: The integration of FUS into neuro-oncology represents a paradigm shift, requiring interdisciplinary collaboration to maximize its potential as a cornerstone of precision medicine in glioma treatment. Future advancements in FUS will likely focus on refining treatment protocols, optimizing real-time targeting, and integrating artificial intelligence (AI)-driven predictive models to personalize therapy.