Pediatric Glioblastoma

Abstract

Glioblastoma in children, when compared with adults, is relatively rare. Despite this rarity, it is apparent from the limited number of publications that pediatric glioblastoma is quite distinct from their adult counterparts. The differences pertain to the molecular genetics, effectiveness of the adjuvant therapies, and possibly the prognosis after treatment. With a plethora of path-breaking translational research coming through in recent times, a host of new information is now available on pediatric glioblastomas that holds great promise as far as the future treatment options are concerned. This chapter is an attempt to highlight the key clinical aspects of pediatric glioblastoma in the light of the emerging clinical and laboratory evidence.

Novel insights on genetics and epigenetics as clinical targets for paediatric astrocytoma

“…Paediatric GBM (pGBM) has a mean incidence rate of .6–.85 per 100 000 patients in United States aged 0 −19 years old 1 . In children, primary GBMs usually originate de novo within the cerebrum, cerebellum, brain stem and spinal cord, whereas secondary GBMs originate from the malignant transformation of other LGG, in particularly diffuse and AA 45 . pGBM has a varying range of symptoms depending upon the age and location of GBM.…”

“…These innovative procedures have shown significant improvements in GTR and survival rates in adults as compared to surgery alone 56 . Nonetheless, it is important to note that successful resection of tumours relies greatly on the location as well as its pathological extensions 45 . DIPG, a brainstem tumour, and HGGs that arise in the optic nerves, midline structures and the spine are often challenging to resect completely and usually results in severe neurological defects.…”

Ensemble learning based functional independence ability estimator for pediatric brain tumor survivors

“…The incidence of primary central nervous system (CNS) tumors in children is approximately 0.003%. 1 In 2013, approximately 3050 pediatric patients were diagnosed with benign or malignant primary CNS tumors. 2 Brain and CNS tumors have more than 100 histopathological subtypes, each with varying incidence depending on patient age and subtype.…”

“…In particular, astrocytic tumors account for 40%–50% of CNS tumors in children. 1 Medulloblastomas are the most common embryonal tumor and comprise 10%–25% of CBTs. 4,5 These tumors only occur in the posterior fossa and may cause leptomeningeal spread; their treatment method combines surgery and radiotherapy (for patients younger than 3 years old).…”

Mitochondrial 1555 G>A variant as a potential risk factor for childhood glioblastoma

“… 3 For example, childhood glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) is a high-grade glioma, likely originating from glial cells or neural precursor cells. Although it is a rare disease compared to adult GBM, only accounting for 3–15% of primary central nervous system (CNS) tumors in children, 4 the disease is very aggressive with poor prognosis. Surgical resection and chemo-radiotherapy remain the standard treatment for childhood glioblastoma, and three-year survival is less than 20% 5 ; therefore, prevention is a worthwhile goal.…”