PURPOSE: The outcome and prognostic factors of brainstem glioma were evaluated following radiotherapy methods. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Between 1986 and 2001, 45 childhood patients with diffuse brainstem glioma were treated. There were 26 boys and 19 girls, with a median age of 7 years (range 3 approximately 18). The histopathological diagnoses were confirmed in 13 patients, which revealed a low-grade glioma in four patients, and high-grade glioma in the other nine. Before 1993, radiation therapy using a regime of 1.8 to 2.0 Gy once a day was performed in 16 cases; thereafter, a regimes of 1.1 or 1.5 Gy twice a day was given in 15 and 14 cases, respectively. Nine patients were treated with adjuvant chemotherapy. The response to the treatment was evaluated by the MRI findings 4 weeks after radiotherapy. RESULTS: After radiotherapy, the neurological deficit improved in 42 of the 45 patients (93%). The MRI responses were as follows; partial response 22/39 (56%), minimal to no response in 16/39 (41%) and tumor progression in 1/39 (3%). The median time to disease progression was 7 months, and the median survival was 12 months; the overall survival rate at 1 year was 41%. There was no significant prognostic factor for overall survival. The progression-free survival was influenced by the tumor histology (low grade vs. high grade, p=0.05) in those patients whose pathology was confirmed. CONCLUSION: The radiation therapy fractionation schedule did not influence the survival. Low grade histology was a possible favorable prognostic factor of progression-free survival in pediatric brainstem glioma patients.
PURPOSE: The outcome and prognostic factors of brainstem glioma were evaluated following radiotherapy methods. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Between 1986 and 2001, 45 childhood patients with diffuse brainstem glioma were treated. There were 26 boys and 19 girls, with a median age of 7 years (range 3 approximately 18). The histopathological diagnoses were confirmed in 13 patients, which revealed a low-grade glioma in four patients, and high-grade glioma in the other nine. Before 1993, radiation therapy using a regime of 1.8 to 2.0 Gy once a day was performed in 16 cases; thereafter, a regimes of 1.1 or 1.5 Gy twice a day was given in 15 and 14 cases, respectively. Nine patients were treated with adjuvant chemotherapy. The response to the treatment was evaluated by the MRI findings 4 weeks after radiotherapy. RESULTS: After radiotherapy, the neurological deficit improved in 42 of the 45 patients (93%). The MRI responses were as follows; partial response 22/39 (56%), minimal to no response in 16/39 (41%) and tumor progression in 1/39 (3%). The median time to disease progression was 7 months, and the median survival was 12 months; the overall survival rate at 1 year was 41%. There was no significant prognostic factor for overall survival. The progression-free survival was influenced by the tumor histology (low grade vs. high grade, p=0.05) in those patients whose pathology was confirmed. CONCLUSION: The radiation therapy fractionation schedule did not influence the survival. Low grade histology was a possible favorable prognostic factor of progression-free survival in pediatric brainstem gliomapatients.
Authors: L R Mandell; R Kadota; C Freeman; E C Douglass; J Fontanesi; M E Cohen; E Kovnar; P Burger; R A Sanford; J Kepner; H Friedman; L E Kun Journal: Int J Radiat Oncol Biol Phys Date: 1999-03-15 Impact factor: 7.038
Authors: I J Dunkel; J H Garvin; S Goldman; L J Ettinger; A M Kaplan; M Cairo; H Li; J M Boyett; J L Finlay Journal: J Neurooncol Date: 1998-03 Impact factor: 4.130
Authors: P J Chuba; L Zamarano; M Hamre; K Bhambhani; A Canady; M B Guys; A Matter; G Portillo; S Chung-bin; J Fontanesi Journal: Childs Nerv Syst Date: 1998-10 Impact factor: 1.475
Authors: Richard J Gilbertson; D Ashley Hill; Roberto Hernan; Mehmet Kocak; Russell Geyer; Jim Olson; Amar Gajjar; Lisa Rush; Ronald L Hamilton; Sydney D Finkelstein; Ian F Pollack Journal: Clin Cancer Res Date: 2003-09-01 Impact factor: 12.531
Authors: Maximilian I Ruge; Philipp Kickingereder; Thorsten Simon; Harald Treuer; Volker Sturm Journal: J Neurooncol Date: 2012-05-12 Impact factor: 4.130
Authors: Izac J Findlay; Geoffry N De Iuliis; Ryan J Duchatel; Evangeline R Jackson; Nicholas A Vitanza; Jason E Cain; Sebastian M Waszak; Matthew D Dun Journal: Oncogene Date: 2021-11-10 Impact factor: 9.867
Authors: Jeffrey V Brower; Daniel J Indelicato; Philipp R Aldana; Eric Sandler; Ronny Rotondo; Nancy P Mendenhall; Robert B Marcus; Zhong Su Journal: Acta Oncol Date: 2013-02-20 Impact factor: 4.089