Effect of Large Doses of Methylprednisolone on Supratentorial Intracranial Tumors

Abstract

We studied the action of high doses (500 mg/daily for 7 days) of methylprednisolone sodium succinate in 12 patients with supratentorial intracranial tumors. 10 tumors were malignant (5 gliomas and 5 metastases), and 2 benign (meningiomas). Clinical improvement ranged from moderate to marked after 24–48 h of therapy. In the 5 metastases, mean reduction of peritumoral edema was 27%, and in apparent tumor volume was 18%; in the gliomas, corresponding reductions were 31 and 15%. 1 of the meningioma cases showed a decrease in edema volume of 21%. These results indicate that methylprednisolone, at least for a short period of time, produces a definite decrease in apparent tumor size, in addition to the reduction of peritumoral edema.

Comparative Effects of Dexamethasone and Methylprednisolone on Peritumoral Brain Edema

“…1 Our study showed that methylprednisolone sodium succinate has a clearly beneficial effect on the development and resolution of peri tumoral brain edema. A statistically significant reduction of edema volume was observed after 7 and 14 days of treatment with high doses of methylprednisolone, confirming previous clinical studies (16,17,20). Our study failed to show any statistically significant reduction of edema volume in dexamethasone group although a definite trent was noted.…”

“…In cerebral neoplasms there is relief of symptoms after administration of OM, and clinical improvement is seen wi thin 24 hours. Methylprednisolone (MP) is another glucocorticoid that has been reported to reduce brain edema in experimental animals ( 6) and to control increased intracranial pressure in patients with brain tumors (16,17,20). It is known that methylprednisolone has less of an adverse influence on bacterial phagocytosis and macrophage migration than OM (26).…”

Efficacy of Steroid Therapy on Liver Metastasis of Thymic Carcinoid.

“…Glucocorticoids also inhibit cell division or the synthesis of DNAin several tissues of laboratory animals ( 15). There were several reports that prednisolone was effective in preventing the growth of cerebral metastatic tumors of a bronchial carcinoid (16), primary malignant lymphoma of the central nervous system ( 1 7) and supratentorial intracranial tumors (18). The present patient's signs and symptomswere well controlled for 2 years and the mass size of the carcinoid was reduced by prednisolone.…”

Dexamethasone effects on vascular volume and tissue hematocrit in experimental RG-2 gliomas and adjacent brain

“…2 and 3). The 3-fold higher values of V v in'brain tumors over normal brain, if generally true, has significant implications for studies that make single-time point measurements of water-soluble compounds in brain tumors, especially when these types of measurements are compared to normal brain as an indication of increased 'drug delivery' [21][22][23]. Since, in this situation, the intravascular amount of a drug will always be higher in tumor than in tumor-free brain, measurements of tissue drug concentration will always be prejudiced in favor of the tumors, unless a vascular space correction is included.…”