Novel treatment options for refractory Germ Cell Tumours: back to the bench!

Multi-disciplinary management of germ-cell tumours (GCT) is highly effective and associated with excellent outcomes. However, treatment of refractory GCT remains a therapeutic challenge with very limited treatment options [1]. In patients who are refractory to or recur after standard dose first-line therapy and subsequent therapies including high-dose chemotherapy, only a few systemic treatments have demonstrated activity and the prognosis of refractory patients is extremely poor with cure rates of <5% [2]. Hence, the exploration of novel treatment options for these patients remains one of the remaining priorities in management of GCT.