Medical Therapy

For example, chemotherapy and targeted drug therapy are used to kill tumor cells and/or slow their growth. Other drugs may treat brain tumor symptoms like seizures.

Depending on a patient’s tumor location, size, and type, medical therapy may be used alone or in combination with surgery and/or radiation therapy. Often, medical therapy (including chemotherapy) is used as a supplement to surgery, especially to treat residual or recurrent tumors. 

At UCSF, a neuro-oncologist will develop individual treatment plans that identify which medical therapies are most suitable for each patient. In addition, UCSF has one of the largest and most versatile clinical trial programs in the United States, with access to a number of experimental therapies including convection-enhanced delivery of chemotherapy drugs, as well as personalized medicine strategies. 

Specific Treatments

Select one of these therapies for a more detailed description.