Generously funded by DUNN with Cancer

David Fortin – University of Sherbrooke, QC

Project Title: “Customized GlioGel formulation for the treatment of glioblastoma”

Description of Project:

The brain tumour cancer named glioblastoma (GBM) remains incurable to this day. The main obstacles to GBM treatment can be summarized in 3 factors: the systemic delivery impediment to the brain related to the presence of the blood brain barrier, the brain tumour stem cells that are highly resistant to standard therapies and the high migration capacity of tumour cells permeating the brain. We propose the combination of chemoattraction, chemotherapy and radiotherapy in a gel inserted into the tumour resection cavity to improve the treatment of GBM. This approach is a local deadly trap for tumour cells that minimizes side effects. Our preliminary results shave shown 1) a very efficient chemoattraction of tumour cells toward the cell 2) high efficiency in eliminating these attracted tumour cells by chemotherapy delivered locally by a gel, and 3) gel-bearing radioisotope shown great feasibility in our animal model. Now it’s time to combine there three modalities into the gel to optimize glioma treatment in a final gel formulation for a preclinical confirmation aimed at future clinical application.

What receiving this award means:

Securing funds for research is difficult, even more so when a rare disease is at stake. As you no doubt have guessed, brain cancer is amongst these rare diseases. Albeit relatively unusual in incidence, it remains one of these aggressive cancers for which there has been very little progress in last the decades. Because of that, we feel that a paradigm shift should be considered in the treatment approach of this disease. Hence, this research project, which has been 10 years in the making, and is progressing very well, and will continue to do so thanks to this generous grant. Thank you again! Rest assured that we will continue to work tirelessly to improve the care of brain tumour patients.

Final Report – July 2026

The Research Feature Grant from the Brain Tumour Foundation supported the development of an implantable multimodal gliogel designed to treat glioblastoma multiforme (GBM). A major challenge with conventional therapies is that the dose of therapeutics deposited in healthy brain tissue often limits the amount that can safely be targeted at the cancer.

To improve GBM outcomes, we proposed combining chemoattraction, chemotherapy, and radiotherapy in a gel inserted into the tumour resection cavity during reoperation. By targeting the site where recurrence is most likely to occur, this approach provides a localized treatment that minimizes side effects and protects healthy brain tissue.

With funding from the Brain Tumour Foundation, we were able to develop and characterize a multimodal gliogel capable of delivering highly localized therapies. This gel was tested in a glioma animal model, and our analyses show that the gliogel remains securely in the resection cavity, treats the critical recurrence area, and protects the healthy brain from radiotoxicity.

The support from the Brain Tumour Foundation provided the necessary data to demonstrate the significant efficacy of this strategy, which achieved an unprecedented 50% cure rate. We are now working to translate this strategy into clinical trials. We would like to thank our hardworking staff and students, as well as the Clinical Research Centre at Sherbrooke University, for their invaluable collaboration