Evaluation of postoperative intratumoral injection of bleomycin for craniopharyngioma in children.

Total excision is the treatment of choice in preventing the relapse of craniopharyngioma, but for tumors involving an extensive area, it is often associated with increased risks of complications. The efficacy of postoperative radiotherapy has not yet been established. The authors have performed minimal tumor excision followed by intensive injection of bleomycin into the remaining tumor as postoperative adjuvant therapy in seven children with craniopharyngioma. Long-term outcome in the children with cystic-type tumors containing little or no solid tissue has proven the regimen to be more advantageous than total excision.