Chemotherapy for medulloblastomas and primitive neuroectodermal tumors.

In the past two decades, chemotherapy has proven to be an increasingly more effective modality in the treatment of medulloblastoma. Current evidence suggests that chemotherapy be included as part of standard treatment for all patients with high-risk medulloblastoma. Ongoing multi-centre trials are determining whether chemotherapy should be added to reduced dose radiotherapy as a substitute therapy for standard-dose radiotherapy. The major randomized and non-randomized chemotherapy trials for newly diagnosed patients with medulloblastoma or for patients at recurrence are presented. It is hoped that the addition of chemotherapy will eventually lead to improved survival rates as well as the reduction in the craniospinal radiotherapy dose for patients with medulloblastoma.