Brain tumors. Challenges and directions.

Brain tumors account for 20% of childhood cancers and provide a "frontier" in which improved disease control and functional outcome require coordinated, directed studies in neurosurgery, radiation therapy, and chemotherapy. Among the several brain tumor types common in children, the recent experiences in medulloblastoma, ependymoma, and tumors occurring in infants and very young children are reviewed in the context of recent clinical trials and ongoing investigations.