[Medical management of malignant gliomas]

The management of patients with malignant glioma aims at improving the duration and quality of life. It rests upon symptomatic (steroid therapy, anticonvulsants, etc.) and specific (chemotherapy, etc.) treatments. It also includes palliative care during the terminal phase of the disease. During the last 15 years, oligodendrogliomas have been demonstrated to be chemosensitive, leading to an improvement of their management; on the other hand, the treatment of glioblastoma multiforme remains disappointing. Development of new research pathways (gene therapy, immunotherapy, antiangiogenic drugs, etc.) feed new hopes for progress in the understanding and management of gliomas during the years to come.