title: Pre-radiation chemotherapy in glioma patients with poor prognostic factors.
abstract: Nineteen patients in an age group from 56-67 years (mean age 62.5 years) with histologically verified glioblastoma multiforme were treated with chemotherapy consisting of two cycles of oral CCNU, intravenous vincristine and oral procarbazine prior to radiation therapy. Ten of the patients had stable disease, monitored by CT scan and neurological examination, and received whole brain radiation. The median survival was 12 months. Nine patients who had progressive disease during chemotherapy did not receive radiation treatment and were put on palliative treatment with dexamethasone. This group had a median survival of 3 months. The median survival in all of the 19 patients who entered the study was 9 months which was comparable to the survival of 56 patients with glioblastoma multiforme who, in a retrospective study, received post-operative radiotherapy. The most important factor predicting survival was steroid-dependency after surgery.
authors.affiliation: Department of Oncology, Norwegian Radium Hospital, Oslo.
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Watne
authors.forename: O
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Nome
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Hager
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Hirschberg
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000971:Antineoplastic Combined Chemotherapy Protocols / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D001932:Brain Neoplasms / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000401:mortality / Q000532:radiotherapy; D003131:Combined Modality Therapy; D005260:Female; D005909:Glioblastoma / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000401:mortality / Q000532:radiotherapy; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011379:Prognosis; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D015996:Survival Rate