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Surgical
Resection for Patients with Benign Primary Brain Tumors and Low Grade Gliomas
Joseph Piepmeier, Joachim M. Baehring
Department of Neurosurgery; Yale
University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT, USA [J.P., J.M.B.]; Department of
Neurology, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT, USA [J.M.B.].
‘Benign’
brain tumors are a heterogeneous group of primary neoplasms representing 40% of
primary brain tumors.
Amongst neuroepithelial tumors, astrocytic neoplasms predominate, followed by
oligodendroglial and mixed glial and glial–neuronal
neoplasms.
Less common are tumors of the ependyma, choroid plexus and neuroepithelial
tumors of unknown origin such as chordoid glioma of the third ventricle.
Neurosurgical intervention is indicated in order to establish a diagnosis,
alleviate symptoms of mass effect, hydrocephalus, or hemorrhage, remove a
seizure focus and decrease the cell pool at risk of malignant
degeneration.
As the majority of patients survive their tumor for years after initial
diagnosis, the benefits of therapy must be carefully weighed against adverse
treatment effects.
This article, with a particular focus on surgical management, reflects the
authors approach to the treatment of low-grade tumors of the brain parenchyma in
the adult and reviews the pertinent literature published on this controversial
issue.
Keywords: benign,
ganglioglioma, glioma, low grade, neurocytoma, oligodendroglioma, pilocytic
astrocytoma, pleomorphic xanthoastrocytoma, surgery
Copyright
©
2004 Kluwer Academic Publishers.
All rights reserved
Source: http://ipsapp007.kluweronline.com/IPS/content/ext/x/J/5042/I/124/A/4/abstract.htm
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