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PDQ Cancer Information Summaries [Internet]. Bethesda (MD): National Cancer Institute (US); 2002-.

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PDQ Cancer Information Summaries [Internet].

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Childhood Brain and Spinal Cord Tumors Summary Index (PDQ®)

Health Professional Version

.

Published online: December 19, 2023.

This PDQ cancer information summary for health professionals provides links to comprehensive, peer-reviewed, evidence-based information about the treatment of childhood brain and spinal cord tumors. It is intended as a resource to inform and assist clinicians in the care of their patients. It does not provide formal guidelines or recommendations for making health care decisions.

This summary is reviewed regularly and updated as necessary by the PDQ Pediatric Treatment Editorial Board, which is editorially independent of the National Cancer Institute (NCI). The summary reflects an independent review of the literature and does not represent a policy statement of NCI or the National Institutes of Health (NIH).

General Information About Childhood Brain and Spinal Cord Tumors

Primary brain tumors are a diverse group of diseases that together constitute the most common solid tumor of childhood. The Central Brain Tumor Registry of the United States (CBTRUS) estimates that approximately 4,300 U.S. children are diagnosed each year.[1]

Brain tumors are classified by histology, but tumor location and extent of spread are also important factors that affect treatment and prognosis. Immunohistochemical analysis, cytogenetic and molecular genetic findings, and measures of proliferative activity are increasingly used in tumor diagnosis and classification.[2]

References

  1. Ostrom QT, Gittleman H, Farah P, et al.: CBTRUS statistical report: Primary brain and central nervous system tumors diagnosed in the United States in 2006-2010. Neuro Oncol 15 (Suppl 2): ii1-56, 2013. [PMC free article: PMC3798196] [PubMed: 24137015]
  2. Louis DN, Perry A, Reifenberger G, et al.: The 2016 World Health Organization Classification of Tumors of the Central Nervous System: a summary. Acta Neuropathol 131 (6): 803-20, 2016. [PubMed: 27157931]

Type of Childhood Brain and Spinal Cord Tumors

For information about the type of childhood brain and spinal cord tumor and its related PDQ summary, see the table below. If a tumor type is not listed, a corresponding PDQ treatment summary is not available.

CNS Tumor Type, Pathological Subtype, and Its Related PDQ Treatment Summary

Tumor Type (Based on the 2021 WHO Classification)aPathological Subtype (Based on the 2021 WHO Classification)aRelated PDQ Treatment Summary
Pediatric-type diffuse high-grade gliomas Diffuse pediatric-type high-grade glioma, H3-wild type and IDH-wild typeChildhood Astrocytomas, Other Gliomas, and Glioneuronal/Neuronal Tumors Treatment
Diffuse midline glioma, H3 K27-altered
Diffuse hemispheric glioma, H3 G34-mutant
Infant-type hemispheric glioma
Circumscribed astrocytic gliomas Pilocytic astrocytoma Childhood Astrocytomas, Other Gliomas, and Glioneuronal/Neuronal Tumors Treatment
High-grade astrocytoma with piloid features
Subependymal giant cell astrocytoma
Pleomorphic xanthoastrocytoma
Choroid glioma
Astroblastoma, MN1-altered
Ependymal tumors Subependymoma Childhood Ependymoma Treatment
Myxopapillary ependymoma
Supratentorial ependymoma, NOS
Supratentorial ependymoma, ZFTA fusion–positive
Supratentorial ependymoma, YAP1 fusion–positive
Posterior fossa ependymoma, NOS
Posterior fossa group A (PFA) ependymoma
Posterior fossa group B (PFB) ependymoma
Spinal ependymoma, NOS
Spinal ependymoma, MYCN-amplified
Pediatric-type diffuse low-grade glioma Diffuse astrocytoma, MYB- or MYBL1-altered Childhood Astrocytomas, Other Gliomas, and Glioneuronal/Neuronal Tumors Treatment
Angiocentric glioma
Polymorphous low-grade neuroepithelial tumor of the young
Diffuse low-grade glioma, MAPK pathway-altered
Glioneuronal and neuronal tumors Dysembryoplastic neuroepithelial tumor Childhood Astrocytomas, Other Gliomas, and Glioneuronal/Neuronal Tumors Treatment
Ganglioglioma
Gangliocytoma
Desmoplastic infantile ganglioglioma
Desmoplastic infantile astrocytoma
Diffuse glioneuronal tumor with oligodendroglioma-like features and nuclear clusters (provisional entity)
Papillary glioneuronal tumor
Rosette-forming glioneuronal tumor
Myxoid glioneuronal tumor
Diffuse leptomeningeal glioneuronal tumor
Multinodular and vacuolating neuronal tumor
Dysplastic cerebellar gangliocytoma (Lhermitte-Duclos disease)
Extraventricular neurocytoma
Cerebellar liponeurocytoma
Central neurocytoma
Tumors of the pineal region Pineoblastoma Childhood Medulloblastoma and Other Central Nervous System Embryonal Tumors Treatment
Embryonal tumors Medulloblastoma, WNT-activated Childhood Medulloblastoma and Other Central Nervous System Embryonal Tumors Treatment
Medulloblastoma, SHH-activated and TP53-mutant; Medulloblastoma, SHH-activated and TP53-wildtype
Medulloblastoma, non-WNT/non-SHH
Medulloblastoma, histologically defined
Desmoplastic nodular medulloblastoma
Medulloblastoma with extensive nodularity
Large cell medulloblastoma
Anaplastic medulloblastoma
Embryonal tumor with multilayered rosettes, C19MC-altered
CNS tumor with BCOR internal tandem duplication
CNS neuroblastoma, FOXR2-activated
CNS embryonal tumor, NEC/NOS
Atypical teratoid/rhabdoid tumor Childhood Central Nervous System Atypical Teratoid/Rhabdoid Tumor Treatment
Germ cell tumors Germinoma Childhood Central Nervous System Germ Cell Tumors Treatment
Embryonal carcinoma
Yolk sac tumor
Choriocarcinoma
Mature teratoma
Immature teratoma
Teratoma with somatic-type malignancy
Mixed germ cell tumor
Tumors of the sellar region Adamantinomatous craniopharyngioma Childhood Craniopharyngioma Treatment
Papillary craniopharyngioma

CNS = central nervous system; NEC = not elsewhere classified; NOS = not otherwise specified; WHO = World Health Organization.

aWHO classification adapted from Louis et al.[1]

References

  1. Louis DN, Perry A, Wesseling P, et al.: The 2021 WHO Classification of Tumors of the Central Nervous System: a summary. Neuro Oncol 23 (8): 1231-1251, 2021. [PMC free article: PMC8328013] [PubMed: 34185076]

Latest Updates to This Summary (12/19/2023)

The PDQ cancer information summaries are reviewed regularly and updated as new information becomes available. This section describes the latest changes made to this summary as of the date above.

This summary was comprehensively reviewed and extensively revised.

This summary was renamed from Childhood Brain and Spinal Cord Tumors Treatment Overview.

This summary is written and maintained by the PDQ Pediatric Treatment Editorial Board, which is editorially independent of NCI. The summary reflects an independent review of the literature and does not represent a policy statement of NCI or NIH. More information about summary policies and the role of the PDQ Editorial Boards in maintaining the PDQ summaries can be found on the About This PDQ Summary and PDQ® Cancer Information for Health Professionals pages.

About This PDQ Summary

Purpose of This Summary

This PDQ cancer information summary for health professionals provides comprehensive, peer-reviewed, evidence-based information about the treatment of childhood brain and spinal cord tumors. It is intended as a resource to inform and assist clinicians in the care of their patients. It does not provide formal guidelines or recommendations for making health care decisions.

Reviewers and Updates

This summary is reviewed regularly and updated as necessary by the PDQ Pediatric Treatment Editorial Board, which is editorially independent of the National Cancer Institute (NCI). The summary reflects an independent review of the literature and does not represent a policy statement of NCI or the National Institutes of Health (NIH).

Board members review recently published articles each month to determine whether an article should:

  • be discussed at a meeting,
  • be cited with text, or
  • replace or update an existing article that is already cited.

Changes to the summaries are made through a consensus process in which Board members evaluate the strength of the evidence in the published articles and determine how the article should be included in the summary.

The lead reviewers for Childhood Brain and Spinal Cord Tumors Summary Index are:

  • Kenneth J. Cohen, MD, MBA (Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center at Johns Hopkins Hospital)
  • Louis S. Constine, MD (James P. Wilmot Cancer Center at University of Rochester Medical Center)
  • Roger J. Packer, MD (Children's National Hospital)
  • D. Williams Parsons, MD, PhD (Texas Children's Hospital)
  • Malcolm A. Smith, MD, PhD (National Cancer Institute)

Any comments or questions about the summary content should be submitted to Cancer.gov through the NCI website's Email Us. Do not contact the individual Board Members with questions or comments about the summaries. Board members will not respond to individual inquiries.

Levels of Evidence

Some of the reference citations in this summary are accompanied by a level-of-evidence designation. These designations are intended to help readers assess the strength of the evidence supporting the use of specific interventions or approaches. The PDQ Pediatric Treatment Editorial Board uses a formal evidence ranking system in developing its level-of-evidence designations.

Permission to Use This Summary

PDQ is a registered trademark. Although the content of PDQ documents can be used freely as text, it cannot be identified as an NCI PDQ cancer information summary unless it is presented in its entirety and is regularly updated. However, an author would be permitted to write a sentence such as “NCI’s PDQ cancer information summary about breast cancer prevention states the risks succinctly: [include excerpt from the summary].”

The preferred citation for this PDQ summary is:

PDQ® Pediatric Treatment Editorial Board. PDQ Childhood Brain and Spinal Cord Tumors Summary Index. Bethesda, MD: National Cancer Institute. Updated <MM/DD/YYYY>. Available at: https://www.cancer.gov/types/brain/hp/child-brain-treatment-pdq. Accessed <MM/DD/YYYY>. [PMID: 26389453]

Images in this summary are used with permission of the author(s), artist, and/or publisher for use within the PDQ summaries only. Permission to use images outside the context of PDQ information must be obtained from the owner(s) and cannot be granted by the National Cancer Institute. Information about using the illustrations in this summary, along with many other cancer-related images, is available in Visuals Online, a collection of over 2,000 scientific images.

Disclaimer

Based on the strength of the available evidence, treatment options may be described as either “standard” or “under clinical evaluation.” These classifications should not be used as a basis for insurance reimbursement determinations. More information on insurance coverage is available on Cancer.gov on the Managing Cancer Care page.

Contact Us

More information about contacting us or receiving help with the Cancer.gov website can be found on our Contact Us for Help page. Questions can also be submitted to Cancer.gov through the website’s Email Us.

Bookshelf ID: NBK66018PMID: 26389453

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