Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2014 Oct;16 Suppl 7(Suppl 7):vii2-11.
doi: 10.1093/neuonc/nou224.

Pros and cons of current brain tumor imaging

Benjamin M Ellingson  1 , Patrick Y Wen  1 , Martin J van den Bent  1 , Timothy F Cloughesy  1
Affiliations
Review

Pros and cons of current brain tumor imaging

Benjamin M Ellingson et al. Neuro Oncol. 2014 Oct.

Abstract

Over the past 20 years, very few agents have been approved for the treatment of brain tumors. Recent studies have highlighted some of the challenges in assessing activity in novel agents for the treatment of brain tumors. This paper reviews some of the key challenges related to assessment of tumor response to therapy in adult high-grade gliomas and discusses the strengths and limitations of imaging-based endpoints. Although overall survival is considered the "gold standard" endpoint in the field of oncology, progression-free survival and response rate are endpoints that hold great value in neuro-oncology. Particular focus is given to advancements made since the January 2006 Brain Tumor Endpoints Workshop, including the development of Response Assessment in Neuro-Oncology criteria, the value of T2/fluid-attenuated inversion recovery, use of objective response rates and progression-free survival in clinical trials, and the evaluation of pseudoprogression, pseudoresponse, and inflammatory response in radiographic images.

Keywords: MRI; RANO; clinical trials; endpoints; response assessment.

PubMed Disclaimer

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. 2013;15(Suppl 2):ii1–i56. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Stupp R, Mason WP, van den Bent MJ, et al. Radiotherapy plus concomitant and adjuvant temozolomide for glioblastoma. N Engl J Med. 2005;352(10):987–996. - PubMed
    1. Stupp R, Hegi ME, Mason WP, et al. Effects of radiotherapy with concomitant and adjuvant temozolomide versus radiotherapy alone on survival in glioblastoma in a randomised phase III study: 5-year analysis of the EORTC-NCIC trial. Lancet Oncol. 2009;10(5):459–466. - PubMed
    1. Weller M, Cloughesy T, Perry JR, et al. Standards of care for treatment of recurrent glioblastoma—are we there yet? Neuro Oncol. 2013;15(1):4–27. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Lamborn KR, Yung WK, Chang SM, et al. Progression-free survival: an important end point in evaluating therapy for recurrent high-grade gliomas. Neuro Oncol. 2008;10(2):162–170. - PMC - PubMed

Publication types

LinkOut - more resources