Kimberly R. Pechman1,2, Shekar N. Kurpad1,2, Deborah L. Donohoe2,3, Devyani P. Bedekar2,3, Kathleen M. Schmainda2,4
1Neurosurgery, Medical College of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, WI, USA; 2Translational Brain Tumor Program , Medical College of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, WI, USA; 3Radiology, Medical College of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, WI, USA; 4Radiology and Biophysics, Medical College of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, WI, USA
Promising results have been obtained with the anti-angiogenic agent, bevacizumab, for the treatment of brain tumor patients. Despite these early promising results, the optimal dose and drug combinations have not yet been defined. The purpose of this study was to characterize the bevacizumab dose-response relationship for brain tumors by measuring the contrast-agent enhanced tumor volumes and relative cerebral blood volume (rCBV) using dynamic susceptibility contrast (DSC) imaging. The studies, performed in the U87 brain tumor model, demonstrated that the optimal dose depends on the method of evaluation used and the time post-treatment that the tumor is evaluated.