Blood-brain barrier breakdown occurring in glioblastoma is a temporary condition often denounced by contrast enhancement upon neurological examination. This condition is useful to increase the intracranial concentration of anti-cancer drugs. The prognosis of glioblastoma and its resistance to conventional therapy has stimulated interest in the search of biomarkers able to unmask and monitor brain barrier breakdown to calibrate the treatment. Despite numerous studies had evidenced the role of circulating tumor and endothelial cells to monitor brain tumor, the mechanism of tumor cells release in the bloodstream and its prognostic significance remain unclear. In this chapter, we want to furnish an update on the relationship between the vascular damage occurring during glioblastoma disease and the reactivity of innate immunity focusing on the cytokines network. Our aim is answer to the question: when and why the liquid biopsy is useful in glioblastoma disease.
Part of the book: Liquid Biopsy