ReviewCancers2024
Dexamethasone in Patients with Glioblastoma: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.
Review in Cancers, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 21 papers.
What it found
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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.
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.
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Who cites it
21 citing papers in PubMed.
- Assessing progesterone receptor modulation in glioblastoma: fromCancer biology & therapy · 2026Article
- Monocytic resilience during chemoradiotherapy is independently associated with survival in IDH-Wildtype glioblastoma.Journal of neuro-oncology · 2026Article
- Dexamethasone Modulates Global DNA Methylation and Oxidative DNA Damage in Glioblastoma Cell Lines.Cells · 2026Article
- Neuropalliative care in brain cancer.Clinical medicine (London, England) · 2026Review
- Prognostic associations of steroid use in patients with glioblastoma: A population-based study.Neuro-oncology practice · 2026Article
- Optimizing the Stupp protocol for treatment of glioblastoma: eliminating age bias, enhancing treatment timing, use of stereotactically-guided sequential boost, and dexamethasone dosing.Journal of neuro-oncology · 2026Article
- Clinical Predictors of Survival After Palliative Radiotherapy for Glioblastoma in a Real-World Cohort Study.Current oncology (Toronto, Ont.) · 2026Article
- Dexamethasone Suppresses Already Low Estrogen Receptor Levels in Meningiomas.International journal of molecular sciences · 2026Review
- Article
- Early withdrawal of systemic corticosteroid following malignant glioma craniotomy: a real-world population-based cohort study.Journal of neuro-oncology · 2026Article
- The influence of neuro-tumor interactions on tumorigenesis and therapeutic response.Experimental hematology & oncology · 2026Review
- Selective agonists of the glucocorticoid receptor (SEGRA) as an alternative to glucocorticoids: a pilot study of their effects on normal mouse brain tissue in the context of an acute peripheral inflammatory modelFrontiers in oncology · 2026Article
- The role of dexamethasone during treatment phases in glioblastoma: Insights from a retrospective observational study.Brain & spine · 2026Article
- Diagnostic value of cellular inflammatory markers in CNS tumor patients undergoing glucocorticoid therapy.Frontiers in oncology · 2026Article
- Hormonal signaling in glioblastoma: emerging roles in stemness and tumor plasticity.Frontiers in endocrinology · 2026Review
- Systemic iron availability differentially shapes tumor and brain iron handling in a sex-dependent manner in glioblastoma.PloS one · 2026Article
- Metabolism of myeloid cells in brain tumors.Frontiers in immunology · 2026Review
- Review of glioblastoma and systemic comorbidities.Frontiers in oncology · 2026Review
- Tumour immune infiltration is independent of peripheral circulation of white blood cells in glioblastoma.Scientific reports · 2025Article
- Beneficial Effects of White Grape Pomace in Experimental Dexamethasone-Induced Hypertension.Diseases (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
11 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
objectiveGlioblastomas are the most common primary central nervous system (CNS) tumors. Although modern management strategies have modestly improved overall survival, the prognosis remains dismal, with treatment side effects often impinging on the clinical course. Glioblastomas cause neurological dysfunction by infiltrating CNS tissue and via perifocal oedema formation. The administration of steroids such as dexamethasone is thought to alleviate symptoms by reducing oedema. However, despite its widespread use, the evidence for the administration of dexamethasone is limited and conflicting. Therefore, we aimed to review the current evidence concerning the use and outcomes of dexamethasone in patients with glioblastoma.
methodsWe performed a systematic review and meta-analysis according to the PRISMA-P guidelines. We performed a restricted search using the keywords "Dexamethasone" and "Glioblastoma" on PubMed, Web of Science, Cochrane Library, and Academic Search Premier. We included studies reporting on overall survival (OS) and progression-free survival (PFS) in glioblastoma patients receiving higher or lower dexamethasone doses. The risk of bias was assessed using ROBINS-I. We performed a meta-analysis using a random effects model for OS and PFS.
resultsTwenty-two retrospective studies were included. Higher doses of dexamethasone were associated with poorer OS (hazard ratio 1.62, confidence interval 1.40-1.88) and PFS (1.49, 1.23-1.81). OS remained worse even when studies corrected for clinical status (1.52, 1.38-1.67).
conclusionDespite the widespread use of dexamethasone in glioblastoma patients, its use is correlated with worse long-term outcomes. Consequently, Dexamethasone administration should be restricted to selected symptomatic patients. Future prospective studies are crucial to confirm these findings.
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