Evidence map›Paper›PMID 38390032›Full record

ReviewNeuro-oncology advances

Reassessing the efficacy of bevacizumab in newly diagnosed glioblastoma: A systematic review and external pseudodata-based analysis.

Giacomo Sferruzza, Massimo Malcangi, Luca Bosco, Gaetano Finocchiaro

Abstract readReview
In one paragraph

Review in Neuro-oncology advances. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 8 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
8citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

8 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.

  1. Pooled it
  2. Review
  3. The functional imperative in high-grade glioma.Experimental & molecular medicine · 2026
    Review
  4. Article
  5. Article
  6. Article
  7. Nanotherapy of Glioblastoma-Where Hope Grows.International journal of molecular sciences · 2025
    Review
  8. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

4 authors.

Giacomo SferruzzaVita-Salute San Raffaele University, Milan, Italy.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2360-4803
Massimo MalcangiVita-Salute San Raffaele University, Milan, Italy.
Luca BoscoVita-Salute San Raffaele University, Milan, Italy.
Gaetano FinocchiaroNeurology Unit, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3583-4040

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Background: First-line use of bevacizumab for glioblastoma (GBM) was evaluated in 2 phase 3 randomized controlled trials (RCT), demonstrating an impact on progression-free survival but not overall survival (OS). However, the crossover events of these trials raised concerns regarding the reliability of this latter analysis. In this study, we conducted an external control-based reassessment of the bevacizumab efficacy in newly diagnosed GBM (ndGBM) against the standard Stupp protocol. Methods: A systematic review of the literature was conducted to identify the phase 3 RCTs in ndGBM incorporating the Stupp protocol as an arm. For the selected studies, we extracted individual patient survival pseudodata of the Stupp protocol arm by digitizing the Kaplan-Meier plots. A comprehensive pipeline was established to select suitable control studies as external benchmarks. Results: Among the 13 identified studies identified in our systematic review, 4 studies resulted as comparable with the AVAglio trial and 2 with the RTOG 0825. Pooled individual patient pseudodata analysis showed no differences in terms of OS when bevacizumab was added to the Stupp protocol. Conclusions: The external-controlled-based reassessment of the bevacizumab treatment in ndGBM confirmed its lack of efficacy in extending OS. Our study includes a summary table of individual patient survival pseudodata from all phase 3 RCTs in ndGBM employing the Stupp protocol and provides a pipeline that offers comprehensive guidance for conducting external control-based assessments in ndGBM.

Indexed as

bevacizumabexternal controlsKaplan–Meier digitalizationnewly diagnosed glioblastoma

Identifiers

PMID38390032
PMCPMC10883711

What OpenQuestion holds

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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.