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Radiother Oncol 2019 Apr 10;136:50-55. Epub 2019 Apr 10.

Department of Pediatric Hematology/Oncology/Hemostaseology, University Medical Center of the Johannes Gutenberg-University Mainz, Germany.

Background And Purpose: While survival times after treatment of medulloblastoma are increasing, little is known about radiochemotherapy (RCT)-induced cerebrovascular changes. High resolution vessel wall imaging (VWI) sequences are an emerging tool for the evaluation of cerebrovascular diseases. We performed VWI in medulloblastoma long-term survivors to screen for late sequelae of RCT. Read More

J Pediatr Hematol Oncol 2019 Apr 9. Epub 2019 Apr 9.

Departments of Radiation Oncology.

Purpose: The purpose of this work was to study the diversity of sonic hedgehog (SHH) medulloblastoma across different age groups with an emphasis on patterns of relapse.

Methods: All data for the study were obtained through review of medical records, imaging, radiation charts, treatment planning, and chemotherapy details.

Results: Sixty-three patients with SHH medulloblastoma were identified from a prospectively maintained database and classified into 3 groups-infantile: ≤3 years (i-SHH, n=11); pediatric: >3 to <18 years (p-SHH, n=21); and adult: ≥18 years (a-SHH; n=31). Read More

BMC Cancer 2019 Apr 3;19(1):300. Epub 2019 Apr 3.

University of Liverpool, Institute of Integrated Biology, Department of Biochemistry, Centre for Cell Imaging, L69 7ZB, Liverpool, UK.

Background: Solid tumours are less oxygenated than normal tissues. This is called tumour hypoxia and leads to resistance to radiotherapy and chemotherapy. The molecular mechanisms underlying such resistance have been investigated in a range of tumour types, including the adult brain tumours glioblastoma, yet little is known for paediatric brain tumours. Read More

World J Surg Oncol 2019 Mar 27;17(1):59. Epub 2019 Mar 27.

Neuro-oncology Clinic, National Cancer Center, Goyang, Republic of Korea.

Background: Leptomeningeal carcinomatosis (LMC) is frequently associated with hydrocephalus, which quickly devastates the performance of the patient. Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) shunt is a widely accepted treatment of choice, but the clinical outcomes in patients with LMC are not well studied. This study aimed to examine the efficacy of a CSF shunt in patients with LMC. Read More

J Neurooncol 2019 May 20;142(3):395-407. Epub 2019 Feb 20.

Division of Pediatrics, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, USA.

Purpose: Medulloblastoma (MB) is the most common malignant brain tumor in children. Recent studies have shown the ability of natural killer (NK) cells to lyse MB cell lines in vitro, but in vivo successes remain elusive and the efficacy and fate of NK cells in vivo remain unknown.

Methods: To address these questions, we injected MB cells into the cerebellum of immunodeficient mice and examined tumor growth at various days after tumor establishment via bioluminescence imaging. Read More

Sci Rep 2019 Feb 18;9(1):2205. Epub 2019 Feb 18.

Aflac Cancer and Blood Disorders Center, Department of Pediatrics, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, 30322, USA.

Treatment for medulloblastoma (MB) - the most common malignant pediatric brain tumor - includes prophylactic radiation administered to the entire brain and spine due to the high incidence of metastasis to the central nervous system. However, the majority of long-term survivors are left with permanent and debilitating neurocognitive impairments as a result of this therapy, while the remaining 30-40% of patients relapse with terminal metastatic disease. Development of more effective targeted therapies has been hindered by our lack of understanding of the underlying mechanisms regulating the metastatic process in this disease. Read More

Nat Rev Dis Primers 2019 Feb 14;5(1):11. Epub 2019 Feb 14.

Hopp Children's Cancer Center Heidelberg (KiTZ), Heidelberg, Germany.

Medulloblastoma (MB) comprises a biologically heterogeneous group of embryonal tumours of the cerebellum. Four subgroups of MB have been described (WNT, sonic hedgehog (SHH), Group 3 and Group 4), each of which is associated with different genetic alterations, age at onset and prognosis. These subgroups have broadly been incorporated into the WHO classification of central nervous system tumours but still need to be accounted for to appropriately tailor disease risk to therapy intensity and to target therapy to disease biology. Read More

J Neuroradiol 2019 May 5;46(3):207-213. Epub 2019 Feb 5.

Grenoble institute of neurosciences, Inserm U836, 38000 Grenoble, France; University Grenoble Alps, 38000 Grenoble, France; UMS IRMaGe, 38000 Grenoble, France; Department of pediatrics, Bordeaux university hospital, 38000 Bordeaux, France; Department of neuroradiology and MRI, Grenoble university hospital, 38000 Grenoble, France. Electronic address:

Introduction: Medulloblastoma is the most common malignant cerebral tumor during childhood, arising in the posterior fossa. Children treated for medulloblastoma often experience working memory (WM) deficits, affecting their quality of life and school performance. The aim of the present study undertaken to describe the cerebellar involvement in WM deficits observed in these children. Read More

Childs Nerv Syst 2019 May 6;35(5):795-800. Epub 2019 Feb 6.

Department of Pediatric Neurosurgery, Beijing Tiantan Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China.

Purpose: To establish some explicit, feasible, and reproducible predictors for CMS.

Materials And Methods: This study was a retrospective case study. Data were obtained from 82 patients with medulloblastoma at a single center, Beijing Tiantan Hospital. Read More

Dev Cell 2019 Jan;48(2):184-199.e5

Institut Curie, PSL Research University, CNRS UMR 3347, INSERM U1021, Orsay 91405, France; Université Paris Sud, Université Paris-Saclay, CNRS UMR 3347, INSERM U1021, Orsay 91405, France. Electronic address:

During cerebellar development, granule neuron progenitors (GNPs) proliferate by transducing Sonic Hedgehog (SHH) signaling via the primary cilium. Precise regulation of ciliogenesis, thus, ensures proper GNP pool expansion. Here, we report that Atoh1, a transcription factor required for GNPs formation, controls the presence of primary cilia, maintaining GNPs responsiveness to SHH. Read More

Clin Case Rep 2019 Jan 19;7(1):94-99. Epub 2018 Nov 19.

Small Animal Hospital, School of Veterinary Medicine, College of Medical Veterinary and Life Sciences University of Glasgow Glasgow UK.

Reports of medulloblastoma in cattle are scarce; however, this neoplasm should be included as a differential diagnosis in cases of cerebellar or central vestibular signs in young cattle. The MRI appearance of the medulloblastoma reported here, previously unreported in cattle, consisted of a T1-weighted hypointense and T2-weighted heterogeneously hyperintense intra-axial mass. Read More

Sci Rep 2019 Jan 17;9(1):166. Epub 2019 Jan 17.

Lodz University of Technology, Faculty of Chemistry, Institute of Applied Radiation Chemistry, Laboratory of Laser Molecular Spectroscopy, Wroblewskiego 15, 93-590, Lodz, Poland.

We have shown that Raman microspectroscopy is a powerful method for visualization of glycocalyx offering cellular interrogation without staining, unprecedented spatial and spectral resolution, and biochemical information. We showed for the first time that Raman imaging can be used to distinguish successfully between glycosylated and nonglycosylated proteins in normal and cancer tissue. Thousands of protein, lipid and glycan species exist in cells and tissues and their metabolism is monitored via numerous pathways, networks and methods. Read More

Eur Radiol 2018 Dec 19. Epub 2018 Dec 19.

Department of Radiology, Institut de Diagnòstic per la Imatge (IDI), Centre Bellvitge, Hospital Universitari de Bellvitge, L'Hospitalet de Llobregat, Spain.

Objectives: Assessing a posterior fossa tumour in an adult can be challenging. Metastasis, haemangioblastoma, ependymal tumours, and medulloblastoma are the most common diagnostic possibilities. Our aim was to evaluate the contribution of magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) in the diagnosis of these entities. Read More

AJNR Am J Neuroradiol 2019 Jan 6;40(1):154-161. Epub 2018 Dec 6.

From the Department of Radiology (M.I., M.Z., K.S., E.T., B.L., K.W.Y.)

Background And Purpose: Distinct molecular subgroups of pediatric medulloblastoma confer important differences in prognosis and therapy. Currently, tissue sampling is the only method to obtain information for classification. Our goal was to develop and validate radiomic and machine learning approaches for predicting molecular subgroups of pediatric medulloblastoma. Read More

Top Magn Reson Imaging 2018 Dec;27(6):479-502

Section of Neuroimaging, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN.

Medulloblastoma is the most common malignant solid tumor in childhood and the most common embryonal neuroepithelial tumor of the central nervous system. Several morphological variants are recognized: classic medulloblastoma, large cell/anaplastic medulloblastoma, desmoplastic/nodular medulloblastoma, and medulloblastoma with extensive nodularity. Recent advances in transcriptome and methylome profiling of these tumors led to a molecular classification that includes 4 major genetically defined groups. Read More

Radiographics 2018 Nov-Dec;38(7):2102-2122

From the Departments of Diagnostic Imaging (J.A., W.M.), Neurooncology (M.Z., V.R.), and Pediatric Neuroradiology (H.B., C.R., S.L.), The Hospital for Sick Children, University of Toronto, 555 University Ave, Toronto, ON, Canada M5G 1X8; and Departments of Diagnostic Imaging (J.A., P.H.) and Pediatric Interventional Radiology (W.M.), Sidra Medical and Research Center, Doha, Ad Dawhah, Qatar.

Brain tumors are the most common solid tumors in the pediatric population. Pediatric neuro-oncology has changed tremendously during the past decade owing to ongoing genomic advances. The diagnosis, prognosis, and treatment of pediatric brain tumors are now highly reliant on the genetic profile and histopathologic features of the tumor rather than the histopathologic features alone, which previously were the reference standard. Read More

Neurooncol Pract 2018 Nov 17;5(4):234-240. Epub 2018 Feb 17.

Department of Radiology and Biomedical Imaging, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA.

Background: Imaging diagnosis of medulloblastoma recurrence relies heavily on identifying new contrast-enhancing lesions on surveillance imaging, with diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) being used primarily for detection of complications. We propose that DWI is more sensitive in detecting distal and leptomeningeal recurrent medulloblastoma than T1-weighted postgadolinium imaging.

Methods: We identified 53 pediatric patients with medulloblastoma, 21 of whom developed definitive disease recurrence within the brain. Read More

Cureus 2018 Jul 18;10(7):e3000. Epub 2018 Jul 18.

Department of Pathology, Osceola Regional Medical Center, Orlando, USA.

Medulloblastoma is the most common type of aggressive pediatric primary brain malignancy. This case describes a 45-year-old Hispanic male with no significant past medical history who presented to the emergency department (ED) complaining of 15 days of 10/10 intractable headaches with one day of lightheadedness, confusion, and loss of balance. An urgent magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of the brain revealed a 4. Read More

Eur J Radiol 2018 Nov 10;108:43-51. Epub 2018 Sep 10.

Developmental Imaging and Biophysics Section, UCL GOS Institute of Child Health, 30 Guilford Street, London WC1N 1EH, United Kingdom. Electronic address:

Post-operative paediatric cerebellar mutism syndrome (pCMS) occurs in around 25% of children undergoing surgery for cerebellar and fourth ventricular tumours. Reversible mutism is the hallmark of a syndrome which comprises severe motor, cognitive and linguistic deficits. Recent evidence from advanced neuroimaging studies has led to the current theoretical understanding of the condition as a form of diaschisis contingent on damage to efferent cerebellar circuitry. Read More

Neurologist 2018 Nov;23(6):191-193

Departments of Neurology.

We describe a gentleman diagnosed with a posterior fossa medulloblastoma in 1998, successfully treated with craniospinal radiation therapy (RT) and posterior fossa RT boost, followed by 12 months of adjuvant chemotherapy. Nineteen years later, at the age of 28, the patient presented with multiple cranial neuropathies and was found to have disseminated high-grade glioma with leptomeningeal dissemination. In addition to the salient features of this case, we provide a brief review of RT-induced malignancies and the need for further research regarding surveillance and prevention strategies. Read More

Br J Radiol 2019 Feb 3;92(1094):20170872. Epub 2019 Jan 3.

1 Birmingham Children's Hospital , Birmingham , UK.

Objective:: To investigate correlations between MRI perfusion metrics measured by dynamic susceptibility contrast and arterial spin labelling in paediatric brain tumours.

Methods:: 15 paediatric patients with brain tumours were scanned prospectively using pseudo-continuous arterial spin labelling (ASL) and dynamic susceptibility contrast (DSC-) MRI with a pre-bolus to minimise contrast agent leakage. Cerebral blood flow (CBF) maps were produced using ASL. Read More

Transl Oncol 2019 Jan 3;12(1):96-105. Epub 2018 Oct 3.

Division of Cancer Imaging Research, Department of Radiology and Radiology Science, Johns Hopkins University, School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD; Department of Oncology, Johns Hopkins University, School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD; Department of Pathology, University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht, The Netherlands. Electronic address:

Medulloblastoma is the most common malignant tumor that arises from the cerebellum of the central nervous system. Clinically, medulloblastomas are treated by surgery, radiation, and chemotherapy, all of which result in toxicity and morbidity. Recent reports have identified that DDX3, a member of the RNA helicase family, is mutated in medulloblastoma. Read More

Asian J Neurosurg 2018 Jul-Sep;13(3):918-920

Department of Neurosurgery, Children's Hospital Medical Center, Tehran University of Medical Science, Tehran, Iran.

Medulloblastoma is one of the common posterior fossa tumors in children. The natural history of this tumor in presymptomatic period is not well known. Widespread use of brain imaging has increased the detection of incidental brain tumors in totally asymptomatic persons. Read More

J Int Med Res 2018 Nov 1;46(11):4781-4790. Epub 2018 Oct 1.

Department of Neurosurgery, Children's Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, China.

We herein report two cases of post-treatment maturation of medulloblastoma (MB). We also conducted a literature review to summarize the clinical and pathologic features of MB maturation. From January 1992 to February 2017, 52 patients with MB underwent surgical resection followed by radiotherapy and chemotherapy. Read More

J Cancer Res Ther 2018 Sep;14(Supplement):S789-S792

Department of Neurosurgery, The First Affiliated Hospital of Chinese PLA General Hospital, Beijing, China.

Recurrent medulloblastoma has a very poor prognosis in children regardless of the treatment employed. We report the case of a 3-year-old child with recurrent refractory medulloblastoma who was treated with both bevacizumab and stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS). The boy was found to harbor a tumor in the cerebral posterior fossa in November 2010. Read More

Neuroradiol J 2018 Dec 19;31(6):554-564. Epub 2018 Sep 19.

1 Department of Radiology and Biomedical Imaging, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, USA.

Purpose: We applied voxelwise apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) histogram analysis in addition to structural magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) findings and patients' age for differentiation of intraaxial posterior fossa tumors involving the fourth ventricle.

Participants And Methods: Pretreatment MRIs of 74 patients with intraaxial brain neoplasm involving the fourth ventricle, from January 1, 2004 to December 31, 2015, were reviewed. The tumor solid components were segmented and voxelwise ADC histogram variables were determined. Read More

Med Sci Monit 2018 Sep 2;24:6107-6112. Epub 2018 Sep 2.

Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) Division, The First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, Henan, China (mainland).

BACKGROUND This research aimed to investigate the value of apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) histogram in differentiating between medulloblastoma and pilocytic astrocytoma in children. MATERIAL AND METHODS Thirty-three children with posterior cranial fossa tumor confirmed by operation and pathology participated in this retrospective study, including 18 children with medulloblastoma and 15 children with pilocytic astrocytoma. ADC images of the maximum lay of tumors were selected, and the region of interest was delineated by Mazda software and analyzed by histogram. Read More

Neurochirurgie 2018 Aug 28. Epub 2018 Aug 28.

Department of pediatric radiology, hôpital Necker-Enfants-Malades, AP-HP, 149, rue de Sèvres, 75105 Paris, France; Inserm U1000, 149, rue de Sèvres, 75015 Paris, France; University René-Descartes, PRES-Sorbonne-Paris-Cité, 12, rue de l'École-de-Médecine, Paris, France; UMR 1163, institut Imagine, 24, boulevard du Montparnasse, 75015 Paris, France.

Medulloblastoma is a frequent high-grade neoplasm among pediatric brain tumours. Its classical imaging features are a midline tumour growing into the fourth ventricle, hyperdense on CT-scan, displaying a hypersignal when using diffusion-weighted imaging, with a variable contrast enhancement. Nevertheless, atypical imaging features have been widely reported, varying according to the age of the patient, and histopathological subtype. Read More

Lancet Child Adolesc Health 2018 03 1;2(3):173-179. Epub 2018 Feb 1.

Dana-Farber/Boston Children's Cancer and Blood Disorders Center, Boston, MD, USA.

Background: Cancer stage at diagnosis is crucial for assessing global efforts to increase awareness of childhood cancer and improve outcomes. However, consistent information on childhood cancer stage is absent from population cancer registries worldwide. The Toronto Childhood Cancer Stage Guidelines, compiled through an international consensus process, were designed to provide a standard framework for collection of information on stage at diagnosis of childhood cancers. Read More

Clin Imaging 2018 Nov - Dec;52:226-239. Epub 2018 Aug 1.

Vancouver General Hospital, 899 W 12th Ave, Vancouver, BC V5Z 1M9, Canada.

The MRI appearance of intraventricular neoplasms is often nonspecific, however knowledge of patient age and tumor location facilitates the formulation of a differential diagnosis. Imaging and pertinent clinical features of the following intraventricular neoplasms are reviewed: ependymoma, subependymoma, central neurocytoma, subependymal giant cell tumor, choroid plexus tumors, medulloblastoma, meningioma, chordoid glioma, rosette-forming glioneuronal tumor, central nervous system lymphoma, and metastasis. Read More

J Paediatr Child Health 2018 Aug;54(8):929-930

Department of Paediatric Neurology and Clinical Neurophysiology, Temple St Children's University Hospital, Dublin, Ireland.

J Neurooncol 2018 Nov 20;140(2):269-279. Epub 2018 Aug 20.

Winship Cancer Institute, Emory University School of Medicine, 1365C Clifton Road, Suite C5086, Atlanta, GA, 30322, USA.

Purpose: Medulloblastoma, the most common primary pediatric malignant brain tumor, originates in the posterior fossa of the brain. Pineoblastoma, which originates within the pineal gland, is a rarer malignancy that also presents in the pediatric population. Medulloblastoma and pineoblastoma exhibit overlapping clinical features and have similar histopathological characteristics. Read More

Pediatr Radiol 2018 12 17;48(13):1955-1963. Epub 2018 Aug 17.

Lysholm Department of Neuroradiology, National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery, London, UK.

Central nervous system neoplasms are the most common solid tumours that develop in children, with the greatest proportion located in the infratentorium. The 2016 World Health Organization Central Nervous System tumour classification evolved from the 2007 edition with the integration of molecular and genetic profiling into the diagnosis, the addition of new entities and the removal of others. Radiology can assist with the subtyping of tumours from certain characteristics described below to provide prognostic information and guide further management. Read More

Int J Radiat Oncol Biol Phys 2018 Nov 8;102(4):744-756. Epub 2018 Jun 8.

Department of Radiation Oncology, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, California; Department of Neurological Surgery, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, California. Electronic address:

Purpose: To investigate the prognostic utility of quantitative 3-dimensional magnetic resonance imaging radiomic analysis for primary pediatric embryonal brain tumors.

Methods And Materials: Thirty-four pediatric patients with embryonal brain tumor with concurrent preoperative T1-weighted postcontrast (T1PG) and T2-weighted fluid-attenuated inversion recovery (FLAIR) magnetic resonance images were identified from an institutional database. The median follow-up period was 5. Read More

World Neurosurg 2018 Nov 9;119:e855-e863. Epub 2018 Aug 9.

Department of Neurosurgery, Medical Faculty, Heinrich Heine University, Düsseldorf, Düsseldorf, Germany.

Objective: To evaluate a new surgical tool combining suction and monopolar neurostimulation (stimulation sucker) for cerebellopontine angle (CPA) tumors. The usefulness for continuous (time) and dynamic (space) facial nerve mapping was studied.

Methods: Patients operated on with the stimulation sucker for a CPA tumor between April 2016 and May 2017 in a tertiary care center were identified. Read More

Sci Rep 2018 Aug 10;8(1):11992. Epub 2018 Aug 10.

Institute of Cancer and Genomic Sciences, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK.

Paediatric brain tumors are becoming well characterized due to large genomic and epigenomic studies. Metabolomics is a powerful analytical approach aiding in the characterization of tumors. This study shows that common cerebellar tumors have metabolite profiles sufficiently different to build accurate, robust diagnostic classifiers, and that the metabolite profiles can be used to assess differences in metabolism between the tumors. Read More

Clin Imaging 2018 Nov - Dec;52:172-176. Epub 2018 Jun 7.

Department of Radiology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA; Research Institute of Biology and Biophysics, National Research Tomsk State University, Tomsk, Russian Federation.

Congenital medulloblastoma is extremely rare. MRI appearance of this tumor in the fetal brain has not been described. A case of congenital medulloblastoma initially observed by antenatal MRI with postnatal follow-up and treatment is presented. Read More

J Neuroimaging 2018 Nov 1;28(6):656-665. Epub 2018 Aug 1.

Department of Radiology and Biomedical Imaging, University of California, San Francisco, CA.

Background And Purpose: We aimed to develop a diagnostic algorithm for differentiation of cerebellar hemisphere tumors, combining Apparent Diffusion Coefficient (ADC) histogram analysis and structural imaging features.

Methods: Pretreatment MRI of patients with pathologically proven cerebellar hemisphere neoplasms were reviewed. Voxel-wise volumetric ADC histograms of tumor solid components were determined. Read More

Pediatr Radiol 2018 10 30;48(11):1630-1641. Epub 2018 Jul 30.

Institute of Cancer and Genomic Sciences, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK.

Background: A tool for diagnosing childhood cerebellar tumours using magnetic resonance (MR) spectroscopy peak height measurement has been developed based on retrospective analysis of single-centre data.

Objective: To determine the diagnostic accuracy of the peak height measurement tool in a multicentre prospective study, and optimise it by adding new prospective data to the original dataset.

Materials And Methods: Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and single-voxel MR spectroscopy were performed on children with cerebellar tumours at three centres. Read More

Pract Radiat Oncol 2019 Jan 21;9(1):e22-e28. Epub 2018 Jul 21.

Department of Radiation Oncology, Beaumont Health, Dearborn, Michigan. Electronic address:

Purpose: This study aimed to evaluate the impact on spine growth in children with medulloblastoma using either photon or electron craniospinal irradiation (CSI).

Methods And Materials: This was a single institution retrospective review of children who were treated with CSI for medulloblastoma. Spine growth was measured on magnetic resonance imaging scans at defined locations on the basis of a published predictive model of spine growth after CSI. Read More

Neuroradiology 2018 Sep 20;60(9):913-919. Epub 2018 Jul 20.

Department of Diagnostic Imaging, Sheba Medical Center, Derech Sheba 2, Ramat Gan, Israel.

Purpose: The aim of this retrospective study is to investigate the value of the susceptibility-weighted imaging (SWI) sequence compared to gradient echo (GRE) in the detection and follow-up of cavernous malformations in patients who underwent whole-brain irradiation as part of their medulloblastoma treatment.

Methods: We retrospectively examined MRI studies of 28 subjects (16 males, 12 females) who received whole-brain irradiation as part of their treatment. Ages at irradiation ranged from 2 to 38 years. Read More

Childs Nerv Syst 2018 Dec 12;34(12):2425-2430. Epub 2018 Jul 12.

Laboratory of Laser Molecular Spectroscopy, Institute of Applied Radiation Chemistry, Faculty of Chemistry, Lodz University of Technology, Wroblewskiego 15, 93-590, Lodz, Poland.

Purpose: The aim of the study is to use Raman spectroscopy to analyze the biochemical composition of medulloblastoma and normal tissues from the safety margin of the CNS and to find specific Raman biomarkers capable of differentiating between tumorous and normal tissues.

Methods: The tissue samples consisted of medulloblastoma (grade IV) (n = 11). The tissues from the negative margins were used as normal controls. Read More

World Neurosurg 2018 Oct 7;118:42-46. Epub 2018 Jul 7.

Department of Neurosurgery, Nicklaus Children's Hospital, Miami, Florida, USA; Department of Neurosurgery, University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, Miami, Florida, USA.

Background: Medulloblastomas are common childhood central nervous system tumors that are prone to leptomeningeal spread. Intramedullary dissemination is rare with very few case reports existing in the available literature.

Case Description: The authors here present a case of a 14-year-old boy with Li-Fraumeni syndrome and medulloblastoma who underwent surgical resection of spinal intramedullary spread. Read More

PLoS One 2018 10;13(7):e0198596. Epub 2018 Jul 10.

Division of Pharmacoengineering and Molecular Pharmaceutics, UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, United States of America.

Background: Cytotoxic neural stem cells (NSCs) have emerged as a promising treatment for Medulloblastoma (MB), the most common malignant primary pediatric brain tumor. The lack of accurate pre-clinical models incorporating surgical resection and tumor recurrence limits advancement in post-surgical MB treatments. Using cell lines from two of the 5 distinct MB molecular sub-groups, in this study, we developed an image-guided mouse model of MB surgical resection and investigate intra-cavity NSC therapy for post-operative MB. Read More

Pediatr Radiol 2018 12 6;48(13):1833-1843. Epub 2018 Jul 6.

Department of Radiology, Children's Hospital Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA.

Pediatric brain tumors differ from those in adults by location, phenotype and genotype. In addition, they show dissimilar imaging characteristics before and after treatment. While adult brain tumor treatment effects are primarily assessed on MRI by measuring the contrast-enhancing components in addition to abnormalities on T2-weighted and fluid-attenuated inversion recovery images, these methods cannot be simply extrapolated to pediatric central nervous system tumors. Read More

Ther Adv Neurol Disord 2018 18;11:1756286418775375. Epub 2018 Jun 18.

Department of Hematology/Oncology and Stem Cell Transplantation, Bambino Gesù Children's Hospital, Rome, Italy.

Medulloblastoma is the most common malignant pediatric brain tumor. Medulloblastoma should not be viewed as a single disease, but as a heterogeneous mixture of various subgroups with distinct characteristics. Based on genomic profiles, four distinct molecular subgroups are identified: Wingless (WNT), Sonic Hedgehog (SHH), Group 3 and Group 4. Read More

World Neurosurg 2018 Sep 30;117:344-349. Epub 2018 Jun 30.

Department of Neuro-Surgery, Govind Ballabh Pant Institute of Postgraduate Medical Education and Research, New Delhi, India.

Background: Lhermitte-Duclos disease is an extremely rare pathologic entity characterized by a cerebellar mass composed of enlarged cerebellar folia containing abnormal ganglion cells. This entity usually presents in young and middle-aged adults and rarely in children. There is no study in the literature analyzing the long-term clinical course of this disease to assess the behavior primarily because of its rarity. Read More

Semin Pediatr Neurol 2018 07 1;26:124-127. Epub 2017 Apr 1.

Department of Neurology, Boston Children׳s Hospital, Boston, MA. Electronic address:

A 15-year-old girl with history of medulloblastoma was evaluated for headache and neurologic deficits 5 years after completion of initial radiation therapy and 3 years following completion of reirradiation. Neurologic examination was notable for new-onset left hemianopia, hemiparesis, and neglect. Magnetic resonance imaging showed extensive areas of cortical T2 prolongation and thickening involving the right parietal, occipital, and temporal lobes with associated extensive gyral enhancement. Read More

Seizure 2018 Aug 18;60:94-95. Epub 2018 Jun 18.

Department of Medical and Surgical Sciences, Magna Graecia University, Viale Europa, Catanzaro, Italy; Regional Epilepsy Centre, Great Metropolitan Hospital, Via Melacrino, Reggio Calabria, Italy; Institute of Molecular Bioimaging and Physiology, National Research Council, Viale Europa, Catanzaro, Italy. Electronic address:

Stroke-like migraine attacks after radiation therapy (SMART) is a late-onset complication of cerebral irradiation, clinically characterized by headache, seizures and focal deficits. We describe two patients with SMART presenting with focal status epilepticus and headache. We believe that SMART is a misnomer that misjudge seizures among clinical features and we suggest to rename this entity as " Seizure with Migraine-like Attacks after Radiation Therapy". Read More