On March 4, 2026 Monteris Medical, the leader in minimally invasive neurosurgical technology with its NeuroBlate System, reported that a newly published randomized prospective study in the distinguished journal Nature Communications suggests that laser interstitial thermal therapy (LITT) using NeuroBlate may enhance the effectiveness of the immunotherapy drug pembrolizumab (Keytruda) for patients with recurrent high grade astrocytoma, including glioblastoma (GBM). The findings come from a Phase 1/randomized Phase 2b clinical trial (NCT02311582) led by investigators at Washington University, the University of Florida and the University of Southern California evaluating the combination of NeuroBlate LITT followed by pembrolizumab.
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High grade astrocytomas, including GBM, remain among the most aggressive and treatment resistant brain tumors. Immune checkpoint inhibitors, such as pembrolizumab, have historically shown limited benefit in this population due to multiple factors, including the impermeability of the blood-brain barrier (BBB) and tumor characteristics allowing for evasion of the body’s immune response.
This study suggests that thermal ablation – heat generated by laser energy – delivered by NeuroBlate induces BBB disruption and activates an immune response, thereby enhancing the therapeutic effect of pembrolizumab.
"What we’re seeing in this trial is that NeuroBlate may be doing more than cytoreducing the tumor – it appears to prime the immune system in ways that make pembrolizumab more effective at delivering real clinical benefit," said Dr. David Tran, lead author and division chief, neuro-oncology and co-director of the University of Southern California Brain Tumor Center in Los Angeles. "This opens the door to continue studying new treatment strategies for patients who currently have very limited options."
In the full study analysis, patients who received NeuroBlate followed by pembrolizumab demonstrated improved overall survival – more than three times – compared with those who received surgery or biopsy followed by the same therapy. The combined approach was also found to be safe and well-tolerated.
"Monteris has invested for more than a decade in pioneering the use of NeuroBlate for brain tumors and drug-resistant epilepsy, and we are proud that our technology continues to play a central role in advancing minimally invasive neurosurgery," said Martin J. Emerson, president and chief executive officer of Monteris Medical. "This new clinical evidence suggests that NeuroBlate may also serve as a powerful enabler of treatments like immunotherapy. We are honored to support the innovators and institutions pushing this field forward and, most importantly, to help bring new hope to patients and their families."
(Press release, Monteris Medical, MAR 4, 2026, View Source [SID1234663261])