title: Treatment results in patients with intracranial ependymomas.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To evaluate the treatment outcomes of patients with intracranial ependymomas.
  
  
  METHODS
  Between 1988-2007, 27 consecutive patients, with 9 patients (33%) aged under 16 years, were treated at our institution for an intracranial ependymoma. Pertinent clinical data were retrieved from the patients' charts. The histopathological findings in 25 cases were reviewed using the 2007 World Health Organization (WHO) classification system. Median follow-up was 84 months.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Infratentorial tumors were diagnosed in 22, and supratentorial tumors in 5 patients. Histopathological findings were ependymoma WHO grade II (E II) in 14 patients, and anaplastic ependymoma WHO grade III (AE III) in 13 patients. A complete tumor resection was achieved with the first operation in 20 cases (74%). Primary adjuvant therapy consisted of chemotherapy alone in a 17-month-old child with an incompletely resected posterior fossa AE III, radiation therapy alone in 4 cases, and combined radiation therapy and chemotherapy in 7 cases. Tumor recurrence was seen in 10 cases (37%), including 5 patients with an E II and 5 patients with an AE III. The 5-year progression-free survival (PFS) was 74% and 67% for E II and AE III, respectively. The 5-year PFS was 80% following a complete resection, and 56% in patients with a residual tumor.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Surgery alone, as the primary treatment, achieves a good outcome in most patients with E II. Good results can be achieved with surgery and adjuvant local radiotherapy in patients with AE III.
authors.affiliation: University Hospital of Bonn Medical Center, Department of Neurosurgery, Germany. azize.bostroem@ukb.uni-bonn.de
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Boström
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Boström
authors.forename: W
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Hartmann
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Pietsch
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Feuss
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: von Lehe
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Simon
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D001932:Brain Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery*; D002530:Cerebellopontine Angle / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery; D059186:Chemoradiotherapy, Adjuvant; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003131:Combined Modality Therapy; D018572:Disease-Free Survival; D004806:Ependymoma / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007091:Image Processing, Computer-Assisted; D007223:Infant; D015192:Infratentorial Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery; D017567:Karnofsky Performance Status; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D019635:Neurosurgical Procedures; D011379:Prognosis; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D016019:Survival Analysis; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D055815:Young Adult