Researchers land $3.2M grant to advance MRI's role in diagnosing glioblastoma

Researchers with the University of California Los Angeles recently earned a grant worth over $3 million to advance their studies on the use of imaging to detect and treat glioblastoma. 

The National Institutes of Health issued the $3.2 million grant to experts at UCLA’s Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center. Dr. Kunal Patel, a neurosurgeon and assistant professor of neurosurgery at the David Geffen School of Medicine, and Dr. Benjamin Ellingson, the director of UCLA’s Brain Tumor Imaging Laboratory and a professor with the department of radiologic sciences, are leading the research, which the duo hopes will improve outcomes related to the deadly, fast-growing brain tumor. 

The team’s work will emphasize the role of specialized MRI techniques capable of detecting subtle changes around tumors with the help of pH-based imaging. The Chemical Exchange Saturation Transfer with Echo-Planar Imaging is a molecular imaging technique that maps tissue acidity and metabolism without the use of contrast. It can help providers visualize signals on imaging that represent cancer cells invading the tissue that surrounds tumors. Traditional imaging techniques often miss these changes, which give early insight into how the disease is progressing, allowing them to better manage treatment. 

“Glioblastoma continues to be one of the most difficult cancers to treat, in part because of its highly infiltrative nature,” Patel said. “This work is focused on improving how we see and understand those infiltrative tumor cells so we can better target them during surgery and beyond.” 

Glioblastoma affects approximately 3 out of every 100 people in the U.S. These tumors are rare, highly aggressive and come with an 18-month survival rate of less than 7%. As such, efforts to improve the diagnosis and treatment of the deadly tumors are a primary target for many researchers. 

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