From the Neurosurgical Service, Imam Hossein Hospital, Shahid Beheshti University, of Medical Sciences, School of Medicine, Tehran, Islamic Republic of Iran.
Abstract: (4781 Views)
The present retrospective study was designed to analyze factors with
prognostic values a) within, and b) significantly associated with, short-term
(12months or less) and long-term (more than 24 months) survival times, i n 72
consecutive patients treated for malignant gliomas. Among 41 (57%)
short-term surviving patients, the absence of both aphasia and motor deficit
(as initial presenting symptoms), postoperative radiation therapy alone or in
combination with chemotherapy, and reoperation were associated with a
relatively better survival prognosis. Among 15 (20.8%) long-term surviving
patients, postoperative radiation therapy and anaplastic, as histological type
of astrocytoma, were marginally associated with improved survival time.
The addition of conventional chemotherapy to postoperative radiation
therapy failed to show a significant improvement in survival time in both
survival groups. The long-term survival was significantly associated with the
following factors: age (under 51 years), reoperation and the absence of
lymphocyte infiltration.
A satisfactory quality and duration of survival was achieved in a
minority of patients with malignant gliomas. Furthermore, a more appropriate
postoperative antitumor therapy may increase the number of these
patients, by avoiding fatal injuries to the normal brain tissues induced by
postoperative antitumor therapies.