Innovative therapeutic approaches: Marburg project fights against aggressive brain tumors!

Innovative therapeutic approaches: Marburg project fights against aggressive brain tumors!

On June 12, 2025, the new research project “PerCareGlio” was launched, led by Prof. Dr. Jörg W. Bartsch at the Department of Neurosurgery at the University of Marburg. It aims to develop personalized therapeutic approaches for glioblastoma, an aggressive form of brain cancer that is considered extremely difficult to treat. According to a research, the average life expectancy of glioblastoma patients is only 14 to 15 months. Standard therapy includes multimodal treatment combining surgical resection, radiation and chemotherapy. However, the risk of recurrence of the disease is high, which underlines the need for effective monitoring.

The “PerCareGlio” project receives funding of around 1.3 million euros from the European Union and is part of the larger ERA PerMed initiative, which is dedicated to promoting personalized medicine. It aims to carry out molecular analyzes of the tumors, which act like a genetic fingerprint of each tumor. This is done by using modern laboratory methods and artificial intelligence to develop individual treatment strategies for patients based on the very own genetic and molecular structure of their tumors. These approaches could potentially help identify already approved drugs that make tumors more vulnerable.

Research alliance and international cooperation

The universities in Freiburg, Paris, Coimbra, Barcelona and Bucharest complement the Marburg research group in this project. The focus is on the molecular differences between glioblastomas in order to develop new and more effective treatment approaches. While current therapy offers limited options and has not seen significant progress in recent years, the interdisciplinary approach of the “PerProGlio” network hopes to provide new insights into the genetic and biological characteristics that influence tumor growth.

A central element of the project is the development of personalized markers and individual risk models. These are intended to help predict susceptibility to recurrence and resistance to therapy, as the BMBF emphasizes. To achieve this, multi-omics data from tissue and liquid biopsies are evaluated in combination with clinical and imaging data. Current monitoring procedures are largely limited to radiological methods that do not have the necessary sensitivity to detect recurrent tumors early.

Future prospects

Prof. Bartsch and his team are optimistic that the project can make a significant contribution to the future treatment reality for glioblastoma patients. By combining modern biological approaches and advanced technologies, the aim is to develop new knowledge and effective therapies that improve survival rates. Information about the cellular heterogeneity of glioblastoma and new therapeutic approaches are the focus of the research.

Overall, the initiative, which brings together not only national but also international partners, promises to be a decisive step in the treatment of one of the most challenging types of cancer. By laying the foundations for individualized therapies, scientists could usher in a new era of cancer treatment.