Alpha-1 antitrypsin (A1AT) is a common genetic disease caused by a mutation in the SERPINA1 gene, predisposing patients to severe premature lung and liver disease. Higher expression of SERPINA1 has been associated with a poor prognosis in patients with high-grade glioblastoma. We present a woman in her 70s with a history of A1AT deficiency treated with weekly plasma-purified A1AT infusions, who presented with metabolic encephalopathy. A CT scan of the brain obtained during admission revealed a left frontal lobe mass measuring 1.1 cm. A craniotomy and resection of the lesion were performed, and the pathology studies revealed a glioblastoma multiforme, WHO grade IV. She is currently healing and awaiting treatment with temozolomide with concomitant radiation and tolerating treatment well.

Glioblastoma multiforme (IDH wild type) is an aggressive glial tumor of astrocytic origin (WHO-grade 4) with a two-year median survival period. Patients who live more than three years are considered as long survivors. In this study, we present a long survivor of a known case of neurofibromatosis type 1 who developed GBM of the giant cell type at age 14 years, and now the patient, at age 28, has been cancer-free for more than 14 years.

Glioblastoma, isocitrate dehydrogenase (IDH) wild type, is an aggressive primary brain malignancy with a poor prognosis, despite treatment including surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation therapy. Few patients with glioblastoma develop metastasis outside the neuroaxis, likely due to disease progression in the brain prior to extraneural dissemination. The driving mutations of tumors in patients with extraneural metastases are not well described. In this case, we present a severe case of extraneural metastatic glioblastoma, as well as the genetic mutations of the tumor.

It is well recognized that B-cell clonal disorders such as Waldenstrom\'s macroglobulinaemia may affect the central nervous system by direct infiltration of malignant B cells (Bing-Neel syndrome). However, there is no recognition in the current literature of a clear link between paraproteinaemia and primary brain tumours such as glioma. We present 3 cases of classical IgM paraproteinaemic neuropathy who developed glioblastoma in the course of their illness following treatment with chemoimmunotherapy (CIT). Due to the progressive symptomatic nature of their neuropathy, all 3 patients were treated with CIT. The patients presented with glioblastoma, IDH-wildtype at 9 months, 5 years, and 6 years following treatment completion. None of the patients had unequivocal evidence of known predisposing factors for glioblastoma. Both disorders are exceedingly rare and the chance of random association is less than one in a million. Potential common pathogenic mechanisms include the influence of paraproteins and circulating lymphoplasmacytic cells on blood-brain permeability and CNS immune micro-environment as well as raised circulating angiogenic cytokines such as vascular endothelial growth factor. In cases with anti-myelin-associated glycoprotein (MAG) antibodies, surface MAG on glial cells may act as a target releasing cells from growth inhibition. We suggest that all glioblastoma cases be screened at diagnosis for serum paraproteins and that such cases be reported to central registries to establish the frequency of the association more accurately.

BACKGROUND: Despite the advances in glioblastoma (GBM) treatment, the average life span of patients is 14 months. Therefore, it is urgent to identity biomarkers of prognosis, treatment response, or development of novel treatment strategies. We previously described the association of high epidermal growth factor-like domain multiple 7 (EGFL7) expression and unfavorable outcome of pilocytic astrocytoma patients. The present study aims to analyze the prognostic potential of EGFL7 in GBM isocitrate dehydrogenase (IDH)-wildtype, using immunohistochemistry and in silico approaches.
METHODS: Spearman\'s correlation analysis of The Cancer Genome Atlas RNA sequencing data was performed. The genes strongly correlated to EGFL7 expression were submitted to enrichment gene ontology and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) analysis. Additionally, EGFL7 expression was associated with patient overall survival. The expression of EGFL7 was analyzed through immunohistochemistry in 74 GBM IDH-wildtype patients\' samples, and was associated with clinicopathological data and overall survival.
RESULTS: In silico analysis found 78 genes strongly correlated to EGFL7 expression. These genes were enriched in 40 biological processes and eight KEGG pathways, including angiogenesis/vasculogenesis, cell adhesion, and phosphoinositide 3-kinase-Akt, Notch, and Rap1 signaling pathways. The immunostaining showed high EGFL7 expression in 39 cases (52.7%). High immunolabelling was significantly associated with low Karnofsky Performance Status and poor overall survival. Cox analysis showed that GBMs IDH-wildtype with high EGFL7 expression presented a higher risk of death compared to low expression (hazard ratio, 1.645; 95% confidence interval, 1.021 to 2.650; p = .041).
CONCLUSIONS: This study gives insights regarding the genes that are correlated with EGFL7, as well as biological processes and signaling pathways, which should be further investigated in order to elucidate their role in glioblastoma biology.

Diverse genetic, epigenetic, and developmental programs drive glioblastoma, an incurable and poorly understood tumor, but their precise characterization remains challenging. Here, we use an integrative approach spanning single-cell RNA-sequencing of 28 tumors, bulk genetic and expression analysis of 401 specimens from the The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA), functional approaches, and single-cell lineage tracing to derive a unified model of cellular states and genetic diversity in glioblastoma. We find that malignant cells in glioblastoma exist in four main cellular states that recapitulate distinct neural cell types, are influenced by the tumor microenvironment, and exhibit plasticity. The relative frequency of cells in each state varies between glioblastoma samples and is influenced by copy number amplifications of the CDK4, EGFR, and PDGFRA loci and by mutations in the NF1 locus, which each favor a defined state. Our work provides a blueprint for glioblastoma, integrating the malignant cell programs, their plasticity, and their modulation by genetic drivers.