Keck School Faculty

Thomas C Chen

Thomas C Chen

Professor of Neurological Surgery
Director, Brain Tumor Center at Keck Hospital of USC
Director, Neurosurgery, Good Samaritan Hospital
Director, USC Neurological Surgery Satellite Operations
Neurosurgery
GNH 3300 Off Campus Los Angeles

Reduced non-CpG methylation is a potential epigenetic target after spinal cord injury Neural Regen Res. 2023 Nov; 18(11):2489-2496. . View in PubMed

Enhanced brain entry of checkpoint-inhibitory therapeutic antibodies facilitated by intraarterial NEO100 in mouse models of brain-localized malignancies J Neurosurg. 2023 Sep 01; 139(3):822-830. . View in PubMed

Inhibition of autophagy and induction of glioblastoma cell death by NEO214, a perillyl alcohol-rolipram conjugate Autophagy. 2023 Aug 06; 1-20. . View in PubMed

From the groin to the brain: a transfemoral path to blood-brain barrier opening Oncotarget. 2023 05 04; 14:413-416. . View in PubMed

Intranasal Delivery of miR133b in a NEO100-Based Formulation Induces a Healing Response in Spinal Cord-Injured Mice Cells. 2023 03 18; 12(6). . View in PubMed

NEO212, a Perillyl Alcohol-Temozolomide Conjugate, Triggers Macrophage Differentiation of Acute Myeloid Leukemia Cells and Blocks Their Tumorigenicity Cancers (Basel). 2022 Dec 09; 14(24). . View in PubMed

Detection of perillyl alcohol and its metabolite perillic acid in postsurgical glioblastoma tissue after intranasal administration of NEO100: illustrative case J Neurosurg Case Lessons. 2022 Aug 22; 4(8). . View in PubMed

5-Aminolevulinic acid-enhanced fluorescence-guided treatment of high-grade glioma using angled endoscopic blue light visualization: technical case series with preliminary follow-up J Neurosurg. 2022 Mar 18; 1-9. . View in PubMed

Lumbar surgical drains do not increase the risk of infections in patients undergoing spine surgery Eur Spine J. 2022 07; 31(7):1775-1783. . View in PubMed

A Prospective, Cohort Study of SITOIGANAP to Treat Glioblastoma When Given in Combination With Granulocyte-Macrophage Colony-Stimulating Factor/Cyclophosphamide/Bevacizumab/Nivolumab or Granulocyte-Macrophage Colony-Stimulating Factor/Cyclophosphamide/Bevacizumab/Pembrolizumab in Patients Who Failed Prior Treatment With Surgical Resection, Radiation, and Temozolomide Front Oncol. 2022; 12:934638. . View in PubMed

The Monoterpenoid Perillyl Alcohol: Anticancer Agent and Medium to Overcome Biological Barriers Pharmaceutics. 2021 Dec 16; 13(12). . View in PubMed

Corrigendum to: Enhanced brain delivery and therapeutic activity of trastuzumab after blood-brain barrier opening by NEO100 in mouse models of brain-metastatic breast cancer Neuro Oncol. 2021 Dec 01; 23(12):2123. . View in PubMed

Surviving Over a Decade With Glioblastoma: A Clinical Course Characterized by Multiple Recurrences, Numerous Salvage Treatments, and Novel Use of Cesium-131 Tiles Cureus. 2021 Nov; 13(11):e19573. . View in PubMed

Medulloblastoma uses GABA transaminase to survive in the cerebrospinal fluid microenvironment and promote leptomeningeal dissemination Cell Rep. 2021 Jul 27; 36(4):109475. . View in PubMed

Potentially Curative Therapeutic Activity of NEO212, a Perillyl Alcohol-Temozolomide Conjugate, in Preclinical Cytarabine-Resistant Models of Acute Myeloid Leukemia Cancers (Basel). 2021 Jul 06; 13(14). . View in PubMed

Utilization of Discarded Surgical Tissue from Ultrasonic Aspirators to Establish Patient-Derived Metastatic Brain Tumor Cells: A Guide from the Operating Room to the Research Laboratory Curr Protoc. 2021 Jun; 1(6):e140. . View in PubMed

In vivo CRISPR screening for novel noncoding RNA functional targets in glioblastoma models J Neurosci Res. 2021 09; 99(9):2029-2045. . View in PubMed

Medulloblastoma uses GABA transaminase to survive in the cerebrospinal fluid microenvironment and promote leptomeningeal dissemination Cell Rep. 2021 06 29; 35(13):109302. . View in PubMed

Phase I trial of intranasal NEO100, highly purified perillyl alcohol, in adult patients with recurrent glioblastoma Neurooncol Adv. 2021 Jan-Dec; 3(1):vdab005. . View in PubMed

Neuro Oncol. 2021 01 30; 23(1):63-75. . View in PubMed

Enhanced brain delivery and therapeutic activity of trastuzumab after blood-brain barrier opening by NEO100 in mouse models of brain-metastatic breast cancer Neuro Oncol. 2021 10 01; 23(10):1656-1667. . View in PubMed

Association Between Outdoor Air Pollution and Risk of Malignant and Benign Brain Tumors: The Multiethnic Cohort Study JNCI Cancer Spectr. 2020 Apr; 4(2):pkz107. . View in PubMed

Efficient Prodrug Activator Gene Therapy by Retroviral Replicating Vectors Prolongs Survival in an Immune-Competent Intracerebral Glioma Model Int J Mol Sci. 2020 Feb 20; 21(4). . View in PubMed

Simultaneous measurement of perillyl alcohol and its metabolite perillic acid in plasma and lung after inhalational administration in Wistar rats Drug Test Anal. 2020 Feb; 12(2):268-279. . View in PubMed

Preclinical studies of a novel snake venom-derived recombinant disintegrin with antitumor activity: A review Biochem Pharmacol. 2020 11; 181:114149. . View in PubMed

Intravenous delivery of microRNA-133b along with Argonaute-2 enhances spinal cord recovery following cervical contusion in mice Spine J. 2020 07; 20(7):1138-1151. . View in PubMed

Developing a clinically relevant radiosensitizer for temozolomide-resistant gliomas PLoS One. 2020; 15(9):e0238238. . View in PubMed

Pharmacokinetic properties of the temozolomide perillyl alcohol conjugate (NEO212) in mice Neurooncol Adv. 2020 Jan-Dec; 2(1):vdaa160. . View in PubMed

miR-18a Inhibits BMP4 and HIF-1a Normalizing Brain Arteriovenous Malformations Circ Res. 2020 10 09; 127(9):e210-e231. . View in PubMed

Sodium Valproate Reduces Neuronal Apoptosis in Acute Pentylenetetrzole-Induced Seizures via Inhibiting ER Stress Neurochem Res. 2019 Nov; 44(11):2517-2526. . View in PubMed

Inhibition of motility by NEO100 through the calpain-1/RhoA pathway J Neurosurg. 2019 Aug 16; 1-12. . View in PubMed

NEO212 induces mitochondrial apoptosis and impairs autophagy flux in ovarian cancer J Exp Clin Cancer Res. 2019 Jun 07; 38(1):239. . View in PubMed

Efficient brain targeting and therapeutic intracranial activity of bortezomib through intranasal co-delivery with NEO100 in rodent glioblastoma models J Neurosurg. 2019 Mar 15; 132(3):959-967. . View in PubMed

Distribution of cancer stem cells in two human brain gliomas Oncol Lett. 2019 Feb; 17(2):2123-2130. . View in PubMed

The Rolipram-Perillyl Alcohol Conjugate (NEO214) Is A Mediator of Cell Death through the Death Receptor Pathway Mol Cancer Ther. 2019 03; 18(3):517-530. . View in PubMed

NEO212, a conjugate of temozolomide and perillyl alcohol, blocks the endothelial-to-mesenchymal transition in tumor-associated brain endothelial cells in glioblastoma Cancer Lett. 2019 02 01; 442:170-180. . View in PubMed

Cytotoxic impact of a perillyl alcohol-temozolomide conjugate, NEO212, on cutaneous T-cell lymphoma in vitro Ther Adv Med Oncol. 2019; 11:1758835919891567. . View in PubMed

NEO412: A temozolomide analog with transdermal activity in melanoma in vitro and in vivo Oncotarget. 2018 Dec 11; 9(97):37026-37041. . View in PubMed

Intranasal Perillyl Alcohol for Glioma Therapy: Molecular Mechanisms and Clinical Development Int J Mol Sci. 2018 Dec 06; 19(12). . View in PubMed

A Novel Venom-Derived Peptide for Brachytherapy of Glioblastoma: Preclinical Studies in Mice Molecules. 2018 Nov 08; 23(11). . View in PubMed

Temozolomide-Perillyl alcohol conjugate impairs Mitophagy flux by inducing lysosomal dysfunction in non-small cell lung Cancer cells and sensitizes them to irradiation J Exp Clin Cancer Res. 2018 Oct 16; 37(1):250. . View in PubMed

Rare Stochastic Expression of O6-Methylguanine- DNA Methyltransferase (MGMT) in MGMT-Negative Melanoma Cells Determines Immediate Emergence of Drug-Resistant Populations upon Treatment with Temozolomide In Vitro and In Vivo Cancers (Basel). 2018 Sep 28; 10(10). . View in PubMed

Therapeutic Immunization against Glioblastoma Int J Mol Sci. 2018 Aug 27; 19(9). . View in PubMed

NEO212: sub-cytotoxic doses capable of inhibiting glioma stem cell invasion Oncoscience. 2018 May; 5(5-6):148-149. . View in PubMed

Influence of Treatment With Tumor-Treating Fields on Health-Related Quality of Life of Patients With Newly Diagnosed Glioblastoma: A Secondary Analysis of a Randomized Clinical Trial JAMA Oncol. 2018 Apr 01; 4(4):495-504. . View in PubMed

Spine Surgery Complicated by an Engorged Lumbar Epidural Venous Plexus from Cerebrospinal Fluid Overshunting: A Case Report and Review of the Literature World Neurosurg. 2018 Mar; 111:68-72. . View in PubMed

Induction of Pro-Apoptotic Endoplasmic Reticulum Stress in Multiple Myeloma Cells by NEO214, Perillyl Alcohol Conjugated to Rolipram Int J Mol Sci. 2018 Jan 17; 19(1). . View in PubMed

NEO212 Inhibits Migration and Invasion of Glioma Stem Cells Mol Cancer Ther. 2018 03; 17(3):625-637. . View in PubMed

Intratumoral delivery of bortezomib: impact on survival in an intracranial glioma tumor model J Neurosurg. 2018 03; 128(3):695-700. . View in PubMed

Phase II study of ERC1671 plus bevacizumab versus bevacizumab plus placebo in recurrent glioblastoma: interim results and correlations with CD4+ T-lymphocyte counts CNS Oncol. 2018 07 01; 7(3):CNS22. . View in PubMed

Bioorthogonal Profiling of a Cancer Cell Proteome Identifies a Large Set of 3-Bromopyruvate Targets beyond Glycolysis ACS Chem Biol. 2018 11 16; 13(11):3054-3058. . View in PubMed

Temozolomide-perillyl alcohol conjugate downregulates O6-methylguanin DNA methltransferase via inducing ubiquitination-dependent proteolysis in non-small cell lung cancer Cell Death Dis. 2018 02 09; 9(2):202. . View in PubMed

Transpedicular Corpectomy and Cage Placement in the Treatment of Traumatic Lumbar Burst Fractures Clin Spine Surg. 2017 Oct; 30(8):360-366. . View in PubMed

A perillyl alcohol-conjugated analog of 3-bromopyruvate without cellular uptake dependency on monocarboxylate transporter 1 and with activity in 3-BP-resistant tumor cells Cancer Lett. 2017 08 01; 400:161-174. . View in PubMed

Perillyl Alcohol and Its Drug-Conjugated Derivatives as Potential Novel Methods of Treating Brain Metastases Int J Mol Sci. 2016 Sep 02; 17(9). . View in PubMed

Primary Intraosseous Meningioma Neurosurg Clin N Am. 2016 Apr; 27(2):189-93. . View in PubMed

Monoamine oxidase A (MAO A) inhibitors decrease glioma progression Oncotarget. 2016 Mar 22; 7(12):13842-53. . View in PubMed

Temozolomide-perillyl alcohol conjugate induced reactive oxygen species accumulation contributes to its cytotoxicity against non-small cell lung cancer Sci Rep. 2016 Mar 07; 6:22762. . View in PubMed

Effects of fusion and conservative treatment on disc degeneration and rates of subsequent surgery after thoracolumbar fracture J Neurosurg Spine. 2016 Mar; 24(3):476-82. . View in PubMed

A novel drug conjugate, NEO212, targeting proneural and mesenchymal subtypes of patient-derived glioma cancer stem cells Cancer Lett. 2016 Feb 28; 371(2):240-50. . View in PubMed

Therapeutic effect of TMZ-POH on human nasopharyngeal carcinoma depends on reactive oxygen species accumulation Oncotarget. 2016 Jan 12; 7(2):1651-62. . View in PubMed

Medulloblastoma initiation and spread: Where neurodevelopment, microenvironment and cancer cross pathways J Neurosci Res. 2016 12; 94(12):1511-1519. . View in PubMed

Heterocellular Contacts with Mouse Brain Endothelial Cells Via Laminin and a6ß1 Integrin Sustain Subventricular Zone (SVZ) Stem/Progenitor Cells Properties Front Cell Neurosci. 2016; 10:284. . View in PubMed

Targeting Notch enhances the efficacy of ERK inhibitors in BRAF-V600E melanoma Oncotarget. 2016 11 01; 7(44):71211-71222. . View in PubMed

Tumor vasculature and glioma stem cells: Contributions to glioma progression Cancer Lett. 2016 10 01; 380(2):545-551. . View in PubMed

Maintenance Therapy With Tumor-Treating Fields Plus Temozolomide vs Temozolomide Alone for Glioblastoma: A Randomized Clinical Trial JAMA. 2015 Dec 15; 314(23):2535-43. . View in PubMed

Nanoparticle biointerfacing by platelet membrane cloaking Nature. 2015 Oct 01; 526(7571):118-21. . View in PubMed

Chemotherapeutic effect of a novel temozolomide analog on nasopharyngeal carcinoma in vitro and in vivo J Biomed Sci. 2015 Aug 19; 22:71. . View in PubMed

Development of the Metronomic Biofeedback Pump for leptomeningeal carcinomatosis: technical note J Neurosurg. 2015 Aug; 123(2):362-72. . View in PubMed

First clinical results of a personalized immunotherapeutic vaccine against recurrent, incompletely resected, treatment-resistant glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) tumors, based on combined allo- and auto-immune tumor reactivity Vaccine. 2015 May 28; 33(23):2690-6. . View in PubMed

A novel temozolomide analog, NEO212, with enhanced activity against MGMT-positive melanoma in vitro and in vivo Cancer Lett. 2015 Mar 28; 358(2):144-151. . View in PubMed

Effects of convection-enhanced delivery of bevacizumab on survival of glioma-bearing animals Neurosurg Focus. 2015 Mar; 38(3):E8. . View in PubMed

Quinoline-based antimalarial drugs: a novel class of autophagy inhibitors Neurosurg Focus. 2015 Mar; 38(3):E12. . View in PubMed

IntroductionNeurooncology: update on therapeutic options. Neurosurg Focus. 2015 Mar; 38(3):E1. . View in PubMed

A Conserved Glycan in the C2 Domain of HIV-1 Envelope Acts as a Molecular Switch to Control X4 Utilization by Clonal Variants with Identical V3 Loops PLoS One. 2015; 10(6):e0128116. . View in PubMed

Stereotactic radiosurgery to the resection cavity for brain metastases: prognostic factors and outcomes J Radiosurg SBRT. 2015; 3(3):179-186. . View in PubMed

Use of ERC-1671 Vaccine in a Patient with Recurrent Glioblastoma Multiforme after Progression during Bevacizumab Therapy: First Published Report Perm J. 2015; 19(2):41-6. . View in PubMed

Preclinical development and clinical use of perillyl alcohol for chemoprevention and cancer therapy Am J Cancer Res. 2015; 5(5):1580-93. . View in PubMed

Chloroquine enhances temozolomide cytotoxicity in malignant gliomas by blocking autophagy Neurosurg Focus. 2014 Dec; 37(6):E12. . View in PubMed

Introduction: Glioblastoma: an update on pathophysiology and management strategies Neurosurg Focus. 2014 Dec; 37(6):Introduction. . View in PubMed

Diffusion restriction in a non-enhancing metastatic brain tumor treated with bevacizumab - recurrent tumor or atypical necrosis? Clin Imaging. 2014 Sep-Oct; 38(5):724-6.. View in PubMed

NEO212, temozolomide conjugated to perillyl alcohol, is a novel drug for effective treatment of a broad range of temozolomide-resistant gliomas Mol Cancer Ther. 2014 Aug; 13(8):2004-17. . View in PubMed

Argonaute-2 promotes miR-18a entry in human brain endothelial cells J Am Heart Assoc. 2014 May 16; 3(3):e000968. . View in PubMed

A novel temozolomide-perillyl alcohol conjugate exhibits superior activity against breast cancer cells in vitro and intracranial triple-negative tumor growth in vivo Mol Cancer Ther. 2014 May; 13(5):1181-93. . View in PubMed

A systematic review of inhaled intranasal therapy for central nervous system neoplasms: an emerging therapeutic option J Neurooncol. 2014 Feb; 116(3):437-46. . View in PubMed

MicroRNA-18a improves human cerebral arteriovenous malformation endothelial cell function Stroke. 2014 Jan; 45(1):293-7. . View in PubMed

Sequential administration of carbon nanotubes and near-infrared radiation for the treatment of gliomas Front Oncol. 2014; 4:180. . View in PubMed

Genomic and transcriptome analysis revealing an oncogenic functional module in meningiomas Neurosurg Focus. 2013 Dec; 35(6):E3. . View in PubMed

Lumbar facet joint and intervertebral disc loading during simulated pelvic obliquity Spine J. 2013 Nov; 13(11):1581-9. . View in PubMed

DNA methylation in the malignant transformation of meningiomas PLoS One. 2013; 8(1):e54114. . View in PubMed

Repositioning of Verrucosidin, a purported inhibitor of chaperone protein GRP78, as an inhibitor of mitochondrial electron transport chain complex I PLoS One. 2013; 8(6):e65695. . View in PubMed

Inhibition of autophagy and induction of breast cancer cell death by mefloquine, an antimalarial agent Cancer Lett. 2012 Dec 30; 326(2):143-54. . View in PubMed

Preferential killing of triple-negative breast cancer cells in vitro and in vivo when pharmacological aggravators of endoplasmic reticulum stress are combined with autophagy inhibitors Cancer Lett. 2012 Dec 01; 325(1):63-71. . View in PubMed

Perillyl alcohol for the treatment of temozolomide-resistant gliomas Mol Cancer Ther. 2012 Nov; 11(11):2462-72. . View in PubMed

Development of immune memory to glial brain tumors after tumor regression induced by immunotherapeutic Toll-like receptor 7/8 activation Oncoimmunology. 2012 May 01; 1(3):298-305. . View in PubMed

Fasting enhances the response of glioma to chemo- and radiotherapy PLoS One. 2012; 7(9):e44603. . View in PubMed

Exploring the Therapeutic Efficacy of Glioma Vaccines Based on Allo- and Syngeneic Antigens and Distinct Immunological Costimulation Activators J Clin Cell Immunol. 2012; Suppl 5:004. . View in PubMed

Noscapine inhibits tumor growth in TMZ-resistant gliomas Cancer Lett. 2011 Dec 22; 312(2):245-52. . View in PubMed

A phase 1/2 study of orally administered synthetic hypericin for treatment of recurrent malignant gliomas Cancer. 2011 Nov 01; 117(21):4905-15. . View in PubMed

Phase 1/pharmacology study of intraperitoneal topotecan alone and with cisplatin: potential for consolidation in ovarian cancer Cancer Chemother Pharmacol. 2011 Aug; 68(2):457-63. . View in PubMed

Molecular genetics of meningiomas: a systematic review of the current literature and potential basis for future treatment paradigms Neurosurg Focus. 2011 May; 30(5):E7. . View in PubMed

Green tea epigallocatechin gallate enhances therapeutic efficacy of temozolomide in orthotopic mouse glioblastoma models Cancer Lett. 2011 Mar 28; 302(2):100-8. . View in PubMed

Effective conversion of irinotecan to SN-38 after intratumoral drug delivery to an intracranial murine glioma model in vivoLaboratory investigation. J Neurosurg. 2011 Mar; 114(3):689-94. . View in PubMed

Preclinical development of novel anti-glioma drugs targeting the endoplasmic reticulum stress response Curr Pharm Des. 2011; 17(23):2428-38. . View in PubMed

GRP78/BiP modulation of GRP78/BiP in altering sensitivity to chemotherapy Methods Enzymol. 2011; 491:25-36. . View in PubMed

A technical description of the brain tumor window model: an in vivo model for the evaluation of intraoperative contrast agents Acta Neurochir Suppl. 2011; 109:259-63. . View in PubMed

A novel method for administering intrathecal chemotherapy in patients with leptomeningeal metastases and shunted hydrocephalus: case report Neurosurgery. 2010 Sep; 67(3 Suppl Operative):onsE306-7; discussion onsE307. . View in PubMed

A-Mode ultrasound guidance for pedicle screw advancement in ovine vertebral bodies Spine J. 2010 May; 10(5):422-32. . View in PubMed

The brain tumor window model: a combined cranial window and implanted glioma model for evaluating intraoperative contrast agents Neurosurgery. 2010 Apr; 66(4):736-43. . View in PubMed

Antiangiogenic activities of 2,5-dimethyl-celecoxib on the tumor vasculature Mol Cancer Ther. 2010 Mar; 9(3):631-41. . View in PubMed

An intensive, progressive exercise program reduces disability and improves functional performance in patients after single-level lumbar microdiskectomy Phys Ther. 2009 Nov; 89(11):1145-57. . View in PubMed

Glioma-associated endothelial cells are chemoresistant to temozolomide J Neurooncol. 2009 Oct; 95(1):13-22. . View in PubMed

Enhanced killing of chemo-resistant breast cancer cells via controlled aggravation of ER stress Cancer Lett. 2009 Sep 08; 282(1):87-97. . View in PubMed

Green tea polyphenols block the anticancer effects of bortezomib and other boronic acid-based proteasome inhibitors Blood. 2009 Jun 04; 113(23):5927-37. . View in PubMed

In vitro characterization of a targeted, dye-loaded nanodevice for intraoperative tumor delineation Neurosurgery. 2009 May; 64(5):965-71; discussion 971-2. . View in PubMed

Stress chaperone GRP78/BiP confers chemoresistance to tumor-associated endothelial cells Mol Cancer Res. 2008 Aug; 6(8):1268-75. . View in PubMed

Increased survivin expression confers chemoresistance to tumor-associated endothelial cells Am J Pathol. 2008 Aug; 173(2):575-85. . View in PubMed

Pharmacogenomics of brain cancer and personalized medicine in malignant gliomas Future Oncol. 2008 Aug; 4(4):525-34. . View in PubMed

Therapeutic vaccination against malignant gliomas based on allorecognition and syngeneic tumor antigens: proof of principle in two strains of rat Vaccine. 2008 Mar 25; 26(14):1764-72. . View in PubMed

Celecoxib analogs that lack COX-2 inhibitory function: preclinical development of novel anticancer drugs Expert Opin Investig Drugs. 2008 Feb; 17(2):197-208. . View in PubMed

Aggravated endoplasmic reticulum stress as a basis for enhanced glioblastoma cell killing by bortezomib in combination with celecoxib or its non-coxib analogue, 2,5-dimethyl-celecoxib Cancer Res. 2008 Feb 01; 68(3):843-51. . View in PubMed

HIV-1 protease inhibitors nelfinavir and atazanavir induce malignant glioma death by triggering endoplasmic reticulum stress Cancer Res. 2007 Nov 15; 67(22):10920-8. . View in PubMed

The unfolded protein response regulator GRP78/BiP as a novel target for increasing chemosensitivity in malignant gliomas Cancer Res. 2007 Oct 15; 67(20):9809-16. . View in PubMed

Glioma-associated endothelial cells show evidence of replicative senescence Exp Cell Res. 2007 Apr 01; 313(6):1192-202. . View in PubMed

Calcium-activated endoplasmic reticulum stress as a major component of tumor cell death induced by 2,5-dimethyl-celecoxib, a non-coxib analogue of celecoxib Mol Cancer Ther. 2007 Apr; 6(4):1262-75. . View in PubMed

Irinotecan: a potential new chemotherapeutic agent for atypical or malignant meningiomas J Neurosurg. 2007 Mar; 106(3):455-62. . View in PubMed

Adjuvant therapy for unresectable meningiomas: benign and malignant Neurosurg Focus. 2007; 23(4):1. . View in PubMed

Primary intraosseous meningioma Neurosurg Focus. 2007; 23(4):E13. . View in PubMed

Nelfinavir potentiation of imatinib cytotoxicity in meningioma cells via survivin inhibition Neurosurg Focus. 2007; 23(4):E9. . View in PubMed

Efficacy of celecoxib in the treatment of CNS lymphomas: an in vivo model Neurosurg Focus. 2006 Nov 15; 21(5):E14. . View in PubMed

Surgical interventions for primary central nervous system lymphoma Neurosurg Focus. 2006 Nov 15; 21(5):E13. . View in PubMed

Multiple signaling pathways are involved in endothelin-1-induced brain endothelial cell migration Am J Physiol Cell Physiol. 2006 Jul; 291(1):C155-64. . View in PubMed

Downregulation of survivin expression and concomitant induction of apoptosis by celecoxib and its non-cyclooxygenase-2-inhibitory analog, dimethyl-celecoxib (DMC), in tumor cells in vitro and in vivo Mol Cancer. 2006 May 18; 5:19. . View in PubMed

Fibroblast growth factor-2-retargeted adenoviral vector for selective transduction of primary glioblastoma multiforme endothelial cells Neurosurg Focus. 2006 Apr 15; 20(4):E26. . View in PubMed

Use of replication-competent retroviral vectors in an immunocompetent intracranial glioma model Neurosurg Focus. 2006 Apr 15; 20(4):E25. . View in PubMed

Enhancement of glioblastoma cell killing by combination treatment with temozolomide and tamoxifen or hypericin Neurosurg Focus. 2006 Apr 15; 20(4):E20. . View in PubMed

Characteristics of tumor-associated endothelial cells derived from glioblastoma multiforme Neurosurg Focus. 2006 Apr 15; 20(4):E22. . View in PubMed

Multitarget inhibition of drug-resistant multiple myeloma cell lines by dimethyl-celecoxib (DMC), a non-COX-2 inhibitory analog of celecoxib Blood. 2005 Dec 15; 106(13):4330-8. . View in PubMed

Retargeting of adenoviral vector using basic fibroblast growth factor ligand for malignant glioma gene therapy J Neurosurg. 2005 Dec; 103(6):1058-66. . View in PubMed

Interleukin-8 differentially regulates migration of tumor-associated and normal human brain endothelial cells Cancer Res. 2005 Nov 15; 65(22):10347-54. . View in PubMed

Single-shot, multicycle suicide gene therapy by replication-competent retrovirus vectors achieves long-term survival benefit in experimental glioma Mol Ther. 2005 Nov; 12(5):842-51. . View in PubMed

The role of contortrostatin, a snake venom disintegrin, in the inhibition of tumor progression and prolongation of survival in a rodent glioma model J Neurosurg. 2005 Sep; 103(3):526-37. . View in PubMed

Potent mimicry of fibronectin-induced intracellular signaling in glioma cells by the homodimeric snake venom disintegrin contortrostatin Neurosurgery. 2005 Jul; 57(1):141-53; discussion 141-53. . View in PubMed

Dimethyl-celecoxib (DMC), a derivative of celecoxib that lacks cyclooxygenase-2-inhibitory function, potently mimics the anti-tumor effects of celecoxib on Burkitt's lymphoma in vitro and in vivo Cancer Biol Ther. 2005 May; 4(5):571-82. . View in PubMed

Functional and phenotypic differences between glioblastoma multiforme-derived and normal human brain endothelial cells J Neurosurg. 2005 Apr; 102(4):699-705. . View in PubMed

Development of a novel recombinant disintegrin, contortrostatin, as an effective anti-tumor and anti-angiogenic agent Pathophysiol Haemost Thromb. 2005; 34(4-5):177-83. . View in PubMed

Differential effects of selective COX-2 inhibitors on cell cycle regulation and proliferation of glioblastoma cell lines Cancer Biol Ther. 2004 Jan; 3(1):55-62. . View in PubMed

Combination therapy with irinotecan and protein kinase C inhibitors in malignant glioma Cancer. 2003 May 01; 97(9 Suppl):2363-73. . View in PubMed

Highly efficient and tumor-restricted gene transfer to malignant gliomas by replication-competent retroviral vectors Hum Gene Ther. 2003 Jan 20; 14(2):117-27. . View in PubMed

Functional effect of contortrostatin, a snake venom disintegrin, on human glioma cell invasion in vitro Cell Commun Adhes. 2003 Jan-Feb; 10(1):1-16. . View in PubMed

Tamoxifen-induced growth arrest and apoptosis in pituitary tumor cells in vitro via a protein kinase C-independent pathway Cancer Lett. 2002 Nov 28; 185(2):131-8. . View in PubMed

Dr. Chen's goal is to make USC Neuro-oncology the leader in innovative treatments for brain and spine tumors. As a result, emphasis is placed on translating new findings made in the laboratory to clinical trials. Laboratory efforts are directed toward research on endoplasmic reticulum stress, understanding glioblastoma endothelial cells, and development of novel anti-invasion therapies such as vicrostatin, a unique disintegrin made at USC, and noscopine. Technological advances that may be used in the treatment of brain or spine tumors are being developed, patented, and will soon be highlighted. Novel clinical trials currently available or soon to be available at USC include anti-EGFRviii vaccine therapy, IL-4-pseudomonas exotoxin for convection enhanced delivery, and anti-tenascin brachytherapy. Surgical therapy is based on the newest techniques in microdissection and image guidance using neuronavigational therapy, with a soon to be added intraoperative MRI scanner. Spine oncology is especially unique as Dr. Chen is one of the few fellowship trained spine surgeons focused on spine cancer. Decisions on therapy are made through tumor board via a multi-disciplinary team dedicated to neuro-oncology including neurosurgery, medical oncology, radiation oncology, neuropathology, and neuro-radiology.
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