Neural activity directly drives increased glioma brain cancer growth

Key points  

• Florey study tackles a ‘missing piece of the puzzle’ in brain cancer research by investigating the influence of cancer cells on the brain. 

• Characterised by their aggressiveness, different cancer grades differentially influence brain cells, with highly aggressive cancer leading to greater neural excitability. 

• Findings further show that this enhanced neural activity directly drives increased brain cancer growth. 

• This study opens new directions for future research to better understand how brain cancer hijacks the brain, revealing novel therapeutic targets for this incurable cancer. 

Understanding common attributes of glioma growth 

Researchers at The Florey have combined with neurosurgeons at the Royal Melbourne Hospital to lead a critical study about how the brain influences brain cancer proliferation, and vice-versa. Published overnight in Nature Neuroscience, this is the first study that has assessed the influence of glioma aggressiveness on neuron and glioma excitability in human tissue.  

Adult gliomas are incurable primary brain cancers, which infiltrate neural networks. Glioma is unique amongst cancers in that they arise, and grow, within the electrically active brain. 

Medical research has historically focused on the most aggressive brain cancer, glioblastoma, with comparatively less research focused on other less-aggressive glioma types. This study illustrated that neuron excitability is altered in different tumour grades, with neurons within the more aggressive high-grade gliomas having greater excitability, leading to greater cancer growth. 

Opening pathways for more targeted therapeutic development  

There is currently no cure for glioma and standard treatment has changed little in 30 years. This study begins to unravel the influence of the brain microenvironment on cancer growth.  With differences between the excitability levels of neurons contributing to the different clinical progression of the disease in this study, and decreased excitability of neurons associated with slower tumour growth, the focus of future research now turns to how the brain is directing cancer growth. 

Professor Lucy Palmer, Head of The Florey’s Neural Network Group, said “glioma is a devastating diagnosis. This study highlights that we need to understand more about the brain’s role in brain cancer, and exactly how it provides a microenvironment that promotes cancer growth. By creating a greater understanding of this relationship, we can better understand which drugs could better treat the disease.” 

This study was performed with neurosurgeons Professor Kate Drummond and Dr Heidi McAlpine at the Royal Melbourne Hospital and was made possible through support from NHMRC and the Brain Cancer Centre from Carrie’s Beanies 4 Brain Cancer. 

Prof Drummond said "we've harnessed the power of collaboration in the Parkville Precinct. Within minutes, live brain tumour tissue is transferred from the operating room at RMH to be studied in the lab at The Florey. My patients deeply appreciate the opportunity to contribute to world-leading research and our findings may transform future treatments.”