Glioblastomas are aggressive brain cancers with a five-year survival rate of <5% due to a limited response to current standard-of-care therapies. Over the past decade, cancer treatments have undergone a transformation from broad approaches, such as chemotherapy and radiation, to targeted therapies, aimed at modulating the tumor microenvironment.
Dr. Matera will investigate the tumor microenvironment in gliomas. Specifically, he will focus on the interaction between neurons and tumor cells. Combining state-of-the-art imaging techniques and sequencing analysis, his goal is to dissect the mechanisms through which gliomas integrate into neuronal circuitries, and eventually devise novel therapies to fight this disease.