The Application of PD-1 Inhibitors in Immunotherapy for Glioblastoma

Glioblastoma (GBM) is the most common primary malignant brain tumor of the central nervous system, marked by drug resistance, rapid progression, and extremely low survival. Immunotherapy for this disease represents a new generation of treatment following surgery, chemotherapy, and radiotherapy. The emergence of immunotherapy has significantly advanced the treatment of various solid tumors and demonstrated promising efficacy. Although PD-1 inhibitors show potential against GBM, clinical benefit from monotherapy remains modest. A series of clinical studies have found that combining PD-1 inhibitors with chemotherapy, radiotherapy, oncolytic viruses, vaccines, other immune checkpoint inhibitors, and CAR-T cell therapy shows better efficacy and safety, making it an attractive therapeutic approach. In this review, we provide a summary of the approved PD-1 inhibitors in GBM, covering their use as monotherapy and in combination therapies, along with their prospects and the latest research advances.