Caffo Maria, Barresi Valeria, Caruso Gerardo, Cutugno Mariano, La Fata Giuseppe, Venza Mario, Alafaci Concetta, Tomasello Francesco
Department of Neurosciences, School of Medicine, University of Messina, A.O.U. Policlinico "G. Martino", via Consolare Valeria, 1, 98125 Messina, Italy.
Int J Mol Sci. 2013 Jan 22;14(1):2135-74. doi: 10.3390/ijms14012135.
Brain metastases (BM) are the most common intracranial tumors and their incidence is increasing. Untreated brain metastases are associated with a poor prognosis and a poor performance status. Metastasis development involves the migration of a cancer cell from the bulk tumor into the surrounding tissue, extravasation from the blood into tissue elsewhere in the body, and formation of a secondary tumor. In the recent past, important results have been obtained in the management of patients affected by BM, using surgery, radiation therapy, or both. Conventional chemotherapies have generally produced disappointing results, possibly due to their limited ability to penetrate the blood-brain barrier. The advent of new technologies has led to the discovery of novel molecules and pathways that have better depicted the metastatic process. Targeted therapies such as bevacizumab, erlotinib, gefitinib, sunitinib and sorafenib, are all licensed and have demonstrated improved survival in patients with metastatic disease. In this review, we will report current data on targeted therapies. A brief review about brain metastatic process will be also presented.
脑转移瘤（BM）是最常见的颅内肿瘤，其发病率正在上升。未经治疗的脑转移瘤与预后不良和功能状态差相关。转移瘤的发展涉及癌细胞从原发肿瘤向周围组织的迁移、从血液渗入身体其他部位的组织以及继发性肿瘤的形成。最近，在脑转移瘤患者的治疗方面取得了重要成果，采用了手术、放射治疗或两者结合的方法。传统化疗通常效果不佳，可能是由于其穿透血脑屏障的能力有限。新技术的出现导致发现了新的分子和途径，这些分子和途径能更好地描述转移过程。贝伐单抗、厄洛替尼、吉非替尼、舒尼替尼和索拉非尼等靶向治疗药物均已获批，并已证明可改善转移性疾病患者的生存率。在本综述中，我们将报告靶向治疗的当前数据。还将简要回顾脑转移过程。
