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Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine
Nervous System Tumor Bank

Publications

Since its establishment in 2014, the Northwestern University Nervous System Tumor Bank (NSTB) has partnered with investigators at Northwestern University and collaborating institutions worldwide to support research on brain and spinal cord tumors.

Biospecimens distributed through the NSTB have supported numerous preclinical and translational research studies, resulting in peer‑reviewed publications that advance our understanding of tumor biology and inform the development of new diagnostic and therapeutic strategies. These achievements reflect the combined efforts of patients and families, clinical teams, research collaborators, and dedicated biobanking staff.

Below are links to publications which utilized research donations from our program.

  1. Singh R, Koempel A, French B, Crawford C, Perlow HK, Rauh S, Kutuk T, Beyer S, Grecula J, Blakaj D  et al.  Improved Progression-Free Survival Following Dose-Escalated Versus Standard-Dose Postoperative Radiation Therapy for High-Risk Meningiomas: An International Multicenter Individual Patient-Level Meta-Analysis (FIRESTORM).  Int J Radiat Oncol Biol Phys  2026 Jul 01;125(3):696-705. doi:10.1016/j.ijrobp.2026.03.036
  2. Mooney R, Ngai G, Kaur G, Kang EY, Lara J, Abd El-Fattah EE, Huang P, Flores L, McDonald M, Talley M  et al.  Neural stem cell delivery of oncolytic CRAd-S-pk7 immunotherapy for stage 3 ovarian cancer: Dose-regimen studies.  Mol Ther Oncol  2026 Jun 18;34(2):201219. pii:201219
  3. Khalifeh JM, ElNemer W, Ghaith AK, Khalilullah T, Rajasekaran J, Xia Y, Ahmed AK, Azad TD, Yang L, Al-Mistarehi AH  et al.  Surgical Management of Spinal Chondrosarcoma: Retrospective Case Series and Systematic Review of the Literature.  Oper Neurosurg  2026 Jun 03;. doi:10.1227/ons.0000000000002086
  4. Habashy KJ, Arrieta VA, Haupt B, Gómez M, El-Hajj VG, Kim KS, Dmello C, Chen L, Carpentier A, Canney M  et al.  Development of skull-implanted ultrasound for blood-brain barrier opening and drug delivery in neuro-oncology.  Neurooncol Adv  2026 Jun;8(Suppl 4):iv9-iv19. doi:10.1093/noajnl/vdaf044
  5. Mejia-Bautista M, Loxas M, Jamshidi P, Duckett D, Wolinsky JP, Ahrendsen JT  A 40-year-old woman with a spinal mass.  Brain Pathol  2026 Jun 01;:e70111. doi:10.1111/bpa.70111
  6. Abi Faraj C, McCutcheon IE, Strickland BA, Debnam JM, Suki D, Lin HY, Ahmed S, O'Brien BJ, Gubbiotti MA, Mayer RR  et al.  Ventricular entry and postoperative leptomeningeal metastasis after resection of supratentorial high-grade glioma.  J Neurosurg  2026 Jun 01;144(6):1438-1452. doi:10.3171/2025.9.JNS25526
  7. Sadagopan NS, Jain R, Chaliparambil RK, Khazanchi R, Rosenow JM, Potts MB, Chandler JP, Tate MC, Magill ST, Geynisman-Tan J  Sex Disparities in Normal Pressure Hydrocephalus Diagnosis and Urinary Outcomes.  Urogynecology (Phila)  2026 Jun 01;32(6):761-768. doi:10.1097/SPV.0000000000001737
  8. Lukas RV, Zhai L, Lauing KL, Kim M, Koch T, Penco-Campillo M, Bommi P, Dixit K, Kumthekar P, Sharp L  et al.  Phase 1 evaluation of patients with newly diagnosed glioblastoma treated with radiation, nivolumab, and IDO1 enzyme inhibitor BMS-986205.  Clin Cancer Res  2026 May 26;. doi:10.1158/1078-0432.CCR-26-1124
  9. Yu TJ, Luks T, Calabrese E, Choudhury A, Chen WC, McDermott MW, Magill ST, Raleigh DR, Villanueva-Meyer JE  MRI Features for Differentiation of Meningioma DNA Methylation Groups.  AJNR Am J Neuroradiol  2026 May 07;. pii:ajnr.A9396
  10. Miyashita Y, Kaiho T, Nagata H, Hiroshima T, Sugiura Y, Zhang K, Kelly ME, Yan Y, Toyoda T, Steffens A  et al.  Exploring fibroblast activation protein as an early biomarker in chronic lung allograft dysfunction.  Eur Respir J  2026 May;67(5). pii:2501738
  11. Benato A, Texakalidis P, Wolinsky JP  Reconstruction of posterior elements of the spine with femoral shaft allograft after spondylectomy for En bloc resection of tumor.  Eur Spine J  2026 May;35(5):2519-2530. doi:10.1007/s00586-025-09141-z
  12. Duffy JT, Martin-Regalado A, Haupt BE, Pogue JR, Thakur A, Cota MF, Zannikou M, Misener S, Krymskaya VP, McCortney K  et al.  Fully Humanized Bispecific T Cell Engager Shows Potent Activity in Central Nervous System and Peripheral Tumors.  Adv Sci (Weinh)  2026 Apr 30;:e22391. doi:10.1002/advs.202522391
  13. Khazanchi R, Govind S, Jain R, Vignolles-Jeong J, Munjal V, Chaliparambil R, Damante M, Chandler JP, Ghalib L, Huang W  et al.  Unsupervised clustering analysis reveals distinct postoperative cortisol trajectories following pituitary adenoma resection in Cushing's disease.  J Neurooncol  2026 Apr 30;177(3). pii:132
  14. Jiang K, Al-Mistarehi AH, Zaitoun KJ, Weber-Levine C, Xia Y, Mendelson BZ, Ksabi NL, Papali P, Neerumalla S, Antar A  et al.  Utility of direct wave intraoperative neuromonitoring for intramedullary spinal cord tumor resection.  J Neurosurg Spine  2026 Apr 24;:1-10. doi:10.3171/2025.11.SPINE25124
  15. Young JS, Cho NW, Lucas CG, Najem H, Mirchia K, Chen WC, Tamaki C, Congivaram H, Seo K, Zakimi N  et al.  IL-6 underlies microenvironment immunosuppression and resistance to therapy in glioblastoma.  Cancer Res  2026 Apr 13;. doi:10.1158/0008-5472.CAN-25-2922
  16. Abi Faraj C, Moss NS, Leung CH, Gule-Monroe MK, Gubbiotti MA, Suki D, McCutcheon IE, Prabhu S, Ferguson SD, Heimberger AB  et al.  Reevaluating routine imaging: clinical utility of postoperative CT after stereotactic brain biopsy.  J Neurosurg  2026 Apr 10;:1-16. doi:10.3171/2025.11.JNS251196
  17. Mirian C, Jensen LR, Juratli TA, Maier AD, Broechner A, Torp SH, Shih HA, Morshed RA, Young JS, Magill ST  et al.  The Ki-67 proliferation index and recurrence risk of intracranial meningioma: a multicenter, retrospective cohort study of 5,050 patients.  Acta Neurochir (Wien)  2026 Apr 06;168(1). pii:124
  18. Jain R, Hesse D, Tierney C, Savas H, Avery R, Magill ST, Russell EJ  The Value of SSTR PET for Detection, Definition, and Ongoing Management of Meningioma.  Radiology  2026 Apr;319(1):e251079. doi:10.1148/radiol.251079
  19. Zhang J, Ong W, Rasnitsyn A, Gonzalez RD, Lopez Gutierrez R, Balin P, Saadeldin A, Wu X, Vladoiu MC, Santa-Maria Lopez V  et al.  Androgen activity in the male embryonic hindbrain drives lethal PFA ependymoma.  Nature  2026 Apr;652(8110):763-773. doi:10.1038/s41586-026-10264-6
  20. Aggarwal A, Youngblood MW, Picart T, Najem H, Oten S, Cady MA, Magill ST, Horbinski CM, Chandler JP, Heimberger AB  et al.  Meningioma cell reprogramming and microenvironment interactions underlie brain invasion.  Neuro Oncol  2026 Apr 01;28(4):926-938. doi:10.1093/neuonc/noaf292
  21. Smith HL, Duckett DJ, Mejia-Bautista M, Alshawa A, Jamshidi P, Castellani RJ, Lukas RV, Chandler JP, Jennings LJ, Santana-Santos L  et al.  IDH-wildtype astrocytoma with FH mutation, epigenetic similarity to IDH-mutant astrocytoma, and hypermethylation of CDKN2A arising in the brainstem.  J Neuropathol Exp Neurol  2026 Apr 01;85(4):398-401. doi:10.1093/jnen/nlaf086
  22. Billingham LK, DeLay SL, Eshac Y, Chia TY, Tripathi S, Olson IE, Zilinger K, Subbiah J, Wang Z, Sadagopan NS  et al.  Microglial fructose metabolism is essential for glioblastoma growth.  Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A  2026 Mar 24;123(12):e2521256123. pii:e2521256123
  23. Lukas RV, Du R, Congivaram H, McCortney K, Dixit K, Horbinski C, Schwartz M, Lezon R, Singer L, Primdahl D  et al.  Consideration of spatial companion biomarkers for targeted therapeutics in cancer: depatuxizumab mafodotin in glioblastoma.  JCI Insight  2026 Mar 23;11(6). pii:e198475
  24. Khalilullah T, Yang X, Yao J, Ghaith AK, Khalifeh JM, Azad TD, Ahmed AK, Xia Y, Theodore N, Romo CG  et al.  Malignant peripheral nerve sheath tumors arising in SMARCB1-associated schwannomatosis: illustrative cases.  J Neurosurg Case Lessons  2026 Mar 16;11(11). pii:CASE25610
  25. Bcharah E, Olson VA, José Pachón-Londoño M, Giotta Lucifero A, Bossi Todeschini A, Moussalem CK, Koontz NA, Cramer J, Bathini AR, Chandler JP  et al.  Clinical Presentation and Management of Dural Arteriovenous Fistulas Fed by the Artery of Davidoff and Schechter: Scoping Review and Case Illustration.  Oper Neurosurg  2026 Mar 13;. doi:10.1227/ons.0000000000001984
  26. Tripathi S, Najem H, Hurley L, Du R, Dmello C, Ali H, McCortney K, Habashy KJ, Zhang P, Horbinski CM  et al.  STING-induced blood-brain barrier opening combined with radiotherapy potentiates antitumor response in a high-grade glioma model.  J Clin Invest  2026 Feb 16;136(4). pii:e198843
  27. Padilla F, Arvanitis C, Bollard CM, Gallus M, De Groot J, Klein RS, Ransohoff RM, Sonabend AM, Okada H  Focused ultrasound-enhanced cell therapy for brain tumors: Summary of roundtable discussions.  Neurooncol Adv  2026;8(1):vdag026. pii:vdag026
  28. Youngblood MW, Tripathi S, Najem H, Congivaram H, Gomez M, Sears TK, Hurley L, Billingham LK, Silvers C, Wang W  et al.  STING activation induces cytotoxic and immune responses in meningiomas via inflammatory cell death pathways.  Nat Commun  2026 Feb 12;17(1). pii:2685
  29. Texakalidis P, Wolinsky JP, Gettman MT, Spinner RJ  Whose Hands on the Robot? Rethinking Roles in Nerve Sheath Tumor Surgery.  World Neurosurg  2026 Feb 11;207:124796. doi:10.1016/j.wneu.2026.124796
  30. Mirian C, Jensen LR, Hoffmann AG, Juratli TA, Maier AD, Lindner P, Broechner A, Torp SH, Shih HA, Morshed RA  et al.  Fractionated radiotherapy adjuvant to surgery of WHO-2 meningioma with and without gross total resection: a multicenter, retrospective cohort study of 1,452 patients.  J Neurooncol  2026 Feb 09;176(3):201. pii:201
  31. Castellino RC, Mumme H, Franson A, Yu B, Robinson H, Dhodapkar K, Aguilera D, Schniederjan M, Keesari R, He Z  et al.  First-in-child phase I trial of p-STAT3 inhibitor WP1066 in pediatric brain tumor patients.  JCI Insight  2026 Feb 09;11(3). pii:e194823
  32. Lalchungnunga H, Dampier CH, Singh O, Hoang DT, Shulman ED, Abdullaev Z, Li B, Luo Z, Wu Z, Pearce TM  et al.  Classification accuracy of a hierarchical molecular inference-based deep-learning system for CNS tumour diagnosis: a multi-institutional, retrospective study.  Lancet Oncol  2026 Feb;27(2):243-253. doi:10.1016/S1470-2045(25)00661-8
  33. Arrieta VA, Benotmane JK, Du R, Habashy KJ, Zhao J, Najem H, Wang S, Hou D, Katz JL, Vázquez-Cervantes GI  et al.  Integrated immune profiling of chordomas reveals spatially organized niches and functional heterogeneity.  Neuro Oncol  2026 Feb 01;28(2):440-453. doi:10.1093/neuonc/noaf213
  34. Budhiraja S, Faisal UH, Baisiwala S, Chojak R, Koutah L, Drewes NB, Cho S, Kazi HA, Chen R, Perrault EN  et al.  THOC1 complexes with SIN3A to regulate R-loops and promote glioblastoma progression.  Neoplasia  2026 Feb;72:101271. pii:101271
  35. Goerzen D, Kim M, Schroff C, Hoang MN, Wollowitz JS, Kolb A, Walshon JP, McCortney K, Horbinski C, Galbraith K  et al.  Machine perception liquid biopsy identifies brain tumours via systemic immune and tumour microenvironment signature.  Nat Nanotechnol  2026 Feb;21(2):277-287. doi:10.1038/s41565-025-02080-2
  36. Dixit KS, Kumthekar P, Lukas RV, Williams A, Tate MC, Chandler JP, Jamshidi P, Helenowski I, Zhang H, Bloch O  et al.  A phase 2, open label, clinical trial of pre-surgical and adjuvant treatment of recurrent glioblastoma with tremelimumab and durvalumab alone and in combination.  J Neurooncol  2026 Jan 28;176(3):185. doi:10.1007/s11060-026-05446-1
  37. Khan F, Petrosyan E, Liu Y, Bahrami A, Taefi E, Geula C, Lesniak MS, Chen P  Microglial TBK1 Signaling Promotes Breast Cancer Brain Metastasis.  Cancer Res  2026 Jan 02;86(1):12-21. doi:10.1158/0008-5472.CAN-25-1791
  38. Whipple-Bones S, Tabor MH, Magill ST, Terrell D, Beer-Furlan A  Combined transcranial and endoscopic endonasal approach for anterior skull base meningiomas: approach and reconstruction strategies.  Neurosurg Focus Video  2026 Jan;14(1):V19. pii:V19
  39. Trautmann RK, Dennison N, McCortney K, Klier S, Cosacak MI, Werner C, Akyoldas G, Horbinski CM, Freudenberg U, Kizil C  High-Throughput 3D Glioblastoma Model in Glycosaminoglycan Hydrogels for Personalized Therapeutic Screening.  Macromol Biosci  2026 Jan;26(1):e00394. pii:e00394
  40. Ali H, Zhou N, Chen L, van Hijfte L, Tulaiha R, Karri V, Zhou Y, Habashy K, Arrieta VA, Kim KS  et al.  YBX1&YBX3 as novel targets to potentiate immune checkpoint blockade response in gliomas.  Neuro Oncol  2026 Jan 01;28(1):159-174. doi:10.1093/neuonc/noaf227
  41. Duckett D, Santana-Santos L, McCord M, Smith V, Lopes MBS, Youngblood MW, Magill ST, Chandler JP, Heimberger AB, Lukas R  et al.  Development, validation, and utility of a clinically applicable methylation classifier for recurrence risk prediction in meningiomas.  Acta Neuropathol Commun  2025 Dec 29;13(1):259. pii:259
  42. Amirkhani N, Maroufi F, Pour-Rashidi A, Shirani M, Chandler JP  Impact of anti-seizure medication duration on postoperative seizures following supratentorial high-grade glioma resection: a mixed-model and tree-based approach.  J Neurooncol  2025 Dec 23;176(2):134. doi:10.1007/s11060-025-05373-7
  43. Aucoin L, Templer JW, Tate MC, Dixit KS  The role of a multidisciplinary clinic for management of patients with IDH mutant gliomas.  Front Oncol  2025;15:1729589. pii:1729589
  44. Youngblood MW, Kumari A, Kang YT, Gould A, Habashy K, Gomez M, Lingamarla H, Morey T, Chen L, Congivaram H  et al.  Dynamic release of extracellular particles after opening of the blood-brain barrier predicts glioblastoma susceptibility to paclitaxel.  Nat Commun  2025 Dec 16;16(1):11045. pii:11045
  45. Sadagopan NS, Gomez M, Tripathi S, Billingham LK, DeLay SL, Cady MA, Congivaram HTS, Chia TY, Wan H, Wang S  et al.  NOTCH3 drives fatty acid oxidation and ferroptosis resistance in aggressive meningiomas.  J Neurooncol  2025 Dec;175(3):979-991. doi:10.1007/s11060-025-05208-5
  46. Haddad AF, Ramesh R, Zakimi N, Chen JS, Quintana D, Gil E, Kabir AS, Sibih YE, Lugo BM, Bhalla S  et al.  Preoperative embolization improves local control and modulates gene expression in atypical WHO grade 2 meningioma.  Neuro Oncol  2025 Dec 01;27(12):3176-3188. doi:10.1093/neuonc/noaf203
  47. Limbrick DD, Skoch J, Auguste K, Grant GA, Lam SK, Tate MC, Langer DJ, Roland JL, Alden TD, Charbel FT  et al.  A Multicenter Study of Noninvasive Wireless Assessment of Cerebrospinal Fluid Shunt Function in Hydrocephalus Patients.  Neurosurgery  2025 Dec 01;97(6):1397-1405. doi:10.1227/neu.0000000000003569
  48. Fanuzzi M, Zheng S, Horbinski CM, Shaaban MA, Congivaram H, Du R, Tripathi S, Hurley L, Kumthekar P, Ahmed A  et al.  Targeting Survivin: Now I Become Death, the Destroyer of Cells.  Int J Mol Sci  2025 Nov 26;26(23). pii:11417
  49. Sears TK, McCord M, Wang W, Steffens A, McCortney K, Chaliparambil R, Sarkaria JN, Horbinski CM  Methylation-induced suppression of YAP/TAZ confers sensitivity to HDAC inhibitors in high-grade IDH mutant gliomas.  JCI Insight  2025 Nov 24;10(22). pii:e195385
  50. Sadagopan NS, Chaliparambil RK, Du R, Sriram N, Jain R, Benato A, Prasad D, Cach G, Alghoul MS, Ellis MF  et al.  Effect of early mobilization on 30-day wound complications following sacral amputation for en bloc tumor resection.  J Neurosurg Spine  2025 Nov 14;44(2):293-299. doi:10.3171/2025.7.SPINE25488