A recent study published in Nature Communications has found that the antiseizure/pain drug gabapentin may improve survival rates for patients with glioblastoma, a highly aggressive primary brain tumor.
Glioblastoma is a devastating disease with an overall survival rate of 12-14 months after diagnosis and 5.5 months following cancer recurrence. Researchers have identified thrombospondin-1, a protein involved in neural circuit development and remodeling, as a key mediator of interactions between neurons and tumor cells that promote glioma growth.
In a retrospective study analyzing 693 patients with glioblastoma, researchers found that those receiving gabapentin survived an average of 16 months compared to 12 months among those not on the drug. This four-month survival benefit was deemed statistically significant.
The results were replicated in a separate data set of 379 newly diagnosed patients, who received gabapentin and lived for an average of 20.8 months, while those without the drug survived for an average of 14.7 months.
Lower levels of serum thrombospondin-1 were also observed among patients receiving gabapentin, suggesting that this protein may serve as a marker of treatment response. However, further assessment is needed to understand the relationship between thrombospondin-1 and gabapentin.
The study’s lead author, Joshua Bernstock, MD, PhD, hailed the findings as an “exciting step forward” in the fight against glioblastoma. While the results are promising, larger, randomized clinical trials are necessary to confirm the findings and explore the role of gabapentin in glioblastoma treatment.
Source: https://ascopost.com/news/may-2025/gabapentin-may-extend-survival-in-patients-with-glioblastoma