Researchers at the University of New Mexico School of Medicine have uncovered new insights into why glioblastoma, one of the deadliest forms of brain cancer, almost always returns despite aggressive treatment.

The findings, led by Sara G. M. Piccirillo, tenure-track assistant professor in the Department of Cell Biology and Physiology and a full member of the University of New Mexico Comprehensive Cancer Centre, point to a hidden reservoir of treatment-resistant cancer cells in a specific brain region known as the subventricular zone.

Glioblastoma has a five-year survival rate of only 7 per cent, significantly lower than the broader five-year survival rate of 33 per cent for all brain cancers combined, according to the National Cancer Institute.

According to Piccirillo, the persistently poor survival outcomes stem largely from the cancer’s tendency to recur after treatment.