Emerging patents in the therapeutic areas of glioma and glioblastoma.

INTRODUCTION: Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) is the most common and aggressive malignant glioma, with patients having a median survival of just over one year. Current chemotherapies, with surgery and radiotherapy, provide only minor patient benefit. There is a great need to discover and develop novel therapies for this devastating disease. Areas covered: The patent literature reveals novel therapies, providing insights into emerging GBM therapeutics. We have used the Google and USPTO patent databases to generate a detailed landscape of patents and patent applications from companies active in the areas of glioma and/or GBM. Specific patents have been grouped into six areas: novel compounds; treatments and therapeutic targets; combination therapies; immunotherapies; delivery methods; and biomarkers for diagnosis and prognosis. Expert opinion: There has been a steady increase in the number of patents on GBM over the last five years. Despite many new compounds being developed and patented for a broad range of cancers, only a small percentage of these are specifically targeted to GBM. Notable trends in the patent literature include both the development of combination therapies to combat the heterogeneous nature of GBM, and the use of immunotherapies building on the promise of cancer vaccines and CAR T-cell therapy.