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Chemotherapy reduced OS in children with low-grade glioma
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2011 ASTRO Annual Meeting
MIAMI - Chemotherapy administered before radiotherapy reduced OS in pediatric patients with low-grade glioma and had no effect on PFS.
Erin S. Murphy, MD, of the department of radiation oncology at the Cleveland Clinic, and Thomas E. Merchant, DO, chief of radiation oncology at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, conducted a retrospective review of information from 180 children treated at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital from May 1986 to August 2010. The children had inoperable intracranial low-grade glioma.
They characterized the cohort according to sex, race, pre-radiation chemotherapy and progression after radiation therapy. The cohort included 81 female patients, 148 white patients, 66 who received pre-radiation chemotherapy, 46 who progressed after radiation therapy and 18 patients who died.
The median follow-up for the surviving patients was 8.8 years after radiation therapy. The 10-year PFS was 71% and the 10-year OS was 89%. In those treated with chemotherapy prior to radiation therapy, the OS was 85%, compared to 92% for patients who were treated with radiation therapy alone.
"Chemotherapy plays an important role in delaying the use of definitive irradiation in young children," the authors concluded. "However, this benefit must be balanced against the negative impact of chemotherapy on overall survival after radiation therapy. Further investigation will focus on the impact of specific chemotherapy regimens and clinical features of these patients to specify the risks."
For more information:
- Murphy ES. #233. Presented at: ASTRO Annual Meeting; Oct. 2-6, 2011; Miami.
Disclosure: Dr. Murphy reports no relevant financial disclosures.
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