IMR Press / FBE / Volume 1 / Issue 2 / DOI: 10.2741/E45

Frontiers in Bioscience-Elite (FBE) is published by IMR Press from Volume 13 Issue 2 (2021). Previous articles were published by another publisher on a subscription basis, and they are hosted by IMR Press on imrpress.com as a courtesy and upon agreement with Frontiers in Bioscience.

Article
Nonsurgical treatment options in the management of intracranial meningiomas
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1 Division of Neurological Surgery, Barrow Neurological Institute, St. Joseph's Hospital and Medical Center, 350 W. Thomas Road, Phoenix, Arizona 85013, USA
2 Division of Neurology, Barrow Neurological Institute, St. Joseph’s Hospital and Medical Center, 350 W. Thomas Road, Phoenix, Arizona 85013
Front. Biosci. (Elite Ed) 2009, 1(2), 494–500; https://doi.org/10.2741/E45
Published: 1 June 2009
Abstract

Surgical resection is the treatment of choice for most intracranial meningiomas. We review the current state of adjuvant therapies, including radiation and chemotherapy. Conventional external beam radiation and stereotactic radiosurgery remain second-line options for patients unwilling or unable to undergo surgery. Radiation therapy is most useful in the setting of recurrent or residual tumor after surgical resection, where it is associated with a clear increase in the length of progression-free survival. This survival advantage is most pronounced with high-grade meningiomas, which have a much higher recurrence rate than low-grade meningiomas, even after gross total resection. In contrast, the role of chemotherapy in the treatment of meningiomas is limited. This treatment modality is often reserved for inoperable tumors or those refractory to radiation treatment. Furthermore, the choice of chemotherapy agents is limited. Hydroxyurea, a ribonucleotide reductase inhibitor, has modest clinical activity in meningiomas. In recent small clinical trials, somatostatin analogues have been moderately effective in controlling tumor growth.

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