Dataset Information

Induction chemotherapy and conformal radiation therapy for very young children with nonmetastatic medulloblastoma: Children's Oncology Group study P9934.

ABSTRACT:

Purpose

P9934 was a prospective trial of systemic chemotherapy, second surgery, and conformal radiation therapy (CRT) limited to the posterior fossa and primary site for children between 8 months and 3 years old with nonmetastatic medulloblastoma. The study was open from June 2000 until June 2006.

Patients and methods

After initial surgery, children received four cycles of induction chemotherapy, followed by age- and response-adjusted CRT to the posterior fossa (18 or 23.4 Gy) and tumor bed (cumulative 50.4 or 54 Gy) and maintenance chemotherapy. Neurodevelopmental outcomes were evaluated and event-free survival (EFS) results were directly compared with a previous study of multiagent chemotherapy without irradiation (Pediatric Oncology Group [POG] trial 9233).

Results

Seventy-four patients met eligibility requirements. The 4-year EFS and overall survival probabilities were 50% ± 6% and 69% ± 5.5%, respectively, which compared favorably to the results from POG 9233. Analysis showed that the desmoplastic/nodular subtype was a favorable factor in predicting survival. Our 4-year EFS rate was 58% ± 8% for patients with desmoplasia. Whereas seven of 10 patients who had disease progression before CRT had primary-site failure, 15 of 19 patients who progressed after CRT had distant-site failure. Neurodevelopmental assessments did not show a decline in cognitive or motor function after protocol-directed chemotherapy and CRT.

Conclusion

The addition of CRT to postoperative chemotherapy in young children with nonmetastatic medulloblastoma increased event-free survival compared with the use of postoperative chemotherapy alone. Future studies will use histopathologic typing (desmoplastic/nodular versus nondesmoplastic/nodular) to stratify patients for therapy by risk of relapse.

SUBMITTER: Ashley DM

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3434977 | biostudies-literature |

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

ACCESS DATA

Similar Datasets

Project description:PurposeAtypical teratoid/rhabdoid tumor (AT/RT) is an aggressive, early-childhood brain tumor without standard effective treatment. To our knowledge, we conducted the first AT/RT-specific cooperative group trial, ACNS0333, to examine the efficacy and safety of intensive postoperative chemotherapy and focal radiation to treat AT/RT.Patients and methodsPatients from birth to 22 years of age with AT/RT were eligible. After surgery, they received 2 courses of multiagent chemotherapy, followed by 3 courses of high-dose chemotherapy with peripheral blood stem cell rescue and involved-field radiation therapy. Timing of radiation was based on patient age and disease location and extent. Central testing of tumor and blood for SMARCB1 status was mandated. Tumor molecular subclassification was performed retrospectively. The primary analysis was event-free survival (EFS) for patients < 36 months of age compared with a cooperative groups' historical cohort. Although accrual was based on the therapeutic question, potential prognostic factors, including age, tumor location, M stage, surgical resection, order of therapy, germline status, and molecular subtype, were explored.ResultsOf 65 evaluable patients, 54 were < 36 months of age. ACNS0333 therapy significantly reduced the risk of EFS events in patients < 36 months of age compared with the historical cohort (P < .0005; hazard rate, 0.43; 95% CI, 0.28 to 0.66). Four-year EFS and overall survival for the entire cohort were 37% (95% CI, 25% to 49%) and 43% (95% CI, 31% to 55%), respectively. Timing of radiation did not affect survival, and 91% of relapses occurred by 2 years from enrollment. Treatment-related deaths occurred in 4 patients.ConclusionThe ACNS0333 regimen dramatically improved survival compared with historical therapies for patients with AT/RT. Clinical characteristics and molecular subgrouping suggest prognostic differences. ACNS0333 results lay a foundation on which to build future studies and incorporate testing of new therapeutic agents.

Project description:PurposeNodular desmoplastic medulloblastoma (ND) and medulloblastoma with extensive nodularity (MBEN) have been associated with a more favorable outcome in younger children. However, treatment-related neurotoxicity remains a significant concern in this vulnerable group of patients.Patients and methodsACNS1221 was a prospective single-arm trial of conventional chemotherapy for nonmetastatic ND and MBEN based on a modified HIT SKK 2000 regimen excluding intraventricular methotrexate, aiming to achieve similar outcome (2-year progression-free survival [PFS] ? 90%) with reduced treatment-related neurotoxicity. Secondary objectives included feasibility of timely central pathology review and evaluation of tumor molecular profile.ResultsTwenty-five eligible patients (15 males and 10 females; median age, 18.7 months) were enrolled. Eighteen patients had ND and 7 had MBEN histology. Three patients had residual disease at baseline. The study closed early because of a higher than expected relapse rate. Twelve patients experienced relapse-local (n= 6), distant (n = 3), and combined (n = 3)-at a median of 9.8 months from diagnosis (range, 8.9-13.7 months), and 2 patients died of disease. Two-year PFS and overall survival rates were 52% (95% CI, 32.4% to 71.6%) and 92% (95% CI, 80.8% to 100.0%) respectively. Patients older than 12 months of age (P = .036) and ND histology (P = .005) were associated with worse PFS. No patients with MBEN histology experienced relapse. All tumor samples clustered within the sonic hedgehog (SHH) group. Methylation analysis delineated 2 subgroups, SHH-I and SHH-II, which were associated with 2-year PFS rates of 30.0% (95% CI, 1.6% to 58.4%) and 66.7% (95% CI, 44.0% to 89.4%), respectively (P = .099).ConclusionThe proposed modified regimen of conventional systemic chemotherapy without serial intraventricular methotrexate injection failed to achieve the targeted 2-year PFS of 90%. With this cohort, we prospectively confirmed the existence of two SHH subgroups and observed a trend toward worse outcome for SHH-I patients.

Project description:PurposeChildren with average-risk medulloblastoma (MB) experience survival rates of ≥ 80% at the expense of adverse consequences of treatment. Efforts to mitigate these effects include deintensification of craniospinal irradiation (CSI) dose and volume.MethodsACNS0331 (ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT00085735) randomly assigned patients age 3-21 years with average-risk MB to receive posterior fossa radiation therapy (PFRT) or involved field radiation therapy (IFRT) following CSI. Young children (3-7 years) were also randomly assigned to receive standard-dose CSI (SDCSI; 23.4 Gy) or low-dose CSI (LDCSI; 18 Gy). Post hoc molecular classification and mutational analysis contextualized outcomes according to known biologic subgroups (Wingless, Sonic Hedgehog, group 3, and group 4) and genetic biomarkers. Neurocognitive changes and ototoxicity were monitored over time.ResultsFive hundred forty-nine patients were enrolled on study, of which 464 were eligible and evaluable to compare PFRT versus IFRT and 226 for SDCSI versus LDCSI. The five-year event-free survival (EFS) was 82.5% (95% CI, 77.2 to 87.8) and 80.5% (95% CI, 75.2 to 85.8) for the IFRT and PFRT regimens, respectively, and 71.4% (95% CI, 62.8 to 80) and 82.9% (95% CI, 75.6 to 90.2) for the LDCSI and SDCSI regimens, respectively. IFRT was not inferior to PFRT (hazard ratio, 0.97; 94% upper CI, 1.32). LDCSI was inferior to SDCSI (hazard ratio, 1.67%; 80% upper CI, 2.10). Improved EFS was observed in patients with Sonic Hedgehog MB who were randomly assigned to the IFRT arm (P = .018). Patients with group 4 MB receiving LDCSI exhibited inferior EFS (P = .047). Children receiving SDCSI exhibited greater late declines in IQ (estimate = 5.87; P = .021).ConclusionReducing the radiation boost volume in average-risk MB is safe and does not compromise survival. Reducing CSI dose in young children with average-risk MB results in inferior outcomes, possibly in a subgroup-dependent manner, but is associated with better neurocognitive outcome. Molecularly informed patient selection warrants further exploration for children with MB to be considered for late-effect sparing approaches.