Outcomes of Children With Low-Grade Gliomas in Low- and Middle-Income Countries: A Systematic Review
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
10-1-2022
Abstract
Purpose: Pediatric CNS tumors are increasingly a priority, particularly with the WHO designation of low-grade glioma (LGG) as one of six index childhood cancers. There are currently limited data on outcomes of pediatric patients with LGGs in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs).
Methods: To better understand the outcomes of LGGs in LMICs, this systematic review interrogated nine literature databases.
Results: The search identified 14,977 publications. Sixteen studies from 19 countries met the selection criteria and were included for data abstraction and analysis. Eleven studies (69%) were retrospective reviews from single institutions, and one (6%) captured institutional data prospectively. The studies captured a total of 957 patients with a median of 49 patients per study. Seven (44%) of the studies described the treatment modalities used. Of 373 patients for whom there was information, 173 (46%) had a gross total or near total resection, 109 (29%) had a subtotal resection, and 91 (24%) had only a biopsy performed. Seven studies, with a total of 476 patients, described the frequency of use of radiotherapy and/or chemotherapy in the cohorts: 83 of these patients received radiotherapy and 76 received chemotherapy. The 5-year overall survival ranged from 69.2% to 93.5%, although lower survival rates were reported at earlier time points. We identified limitations in the published studies with respect to the cohort sizes and methodologies.
Conclusion: The included studies reported survival rates frequently exceeding 80%, although the ultimate number of studies was limited, pointing to the paucity of studies describing the outcomes of children with LGGs in LMICs. This study underscores the need for more robust data on outcomes in pediatric LGG.
Recommended Citation
Ward, Richard; Jones, Hannah M; Witt, Davis; Boop, Frederick; Bouffet, Eric; Rodriguez-Galindo, Carlos; Qaddoumi, Ibrahim; and Moreira, Daniel C, "Outcomes of Children With Low-Grade Gliomas in Low- and Middle-Income Countries: A Systematic Review" (2022). Department of Medical Oncology Faculty Papers. Paper 210.
https://jdc.jefferson.edu/medoncfp/210
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 License.
PubMed ID
36198134
Language
English
Comments
This article is the author’s final published version in JCO global oncology, Volume 8, October 2022, Pages e2200199.
The published version is available at https://doi.org/10.1200/GO.22.00199. Copyright © Ward et al.