Spatial and Ecological Factors Modulate the Incidence of Anti-NMDAR Encephalitis-A Systematic Review.

Anti-NMDAR encephalitis has been associated with multiple antigenic triggers (i.e., ovarian teratomas, prodromal viral infections) but whether geographic, climatic, and environmental factors might influence disease risk has not been explored yet.

Adult brainstem glioma presenting with isolated persistent hemifacial spasm or facial nerve palsy.

Object: Adult brainstem gliomas are a rare group of heterogeneous brain tumors. Classical clinical presentation includes progressive impairment of cranial nerves associated with long tract signs. The prognosis and response to treatment are poor; nevertheless, some patients do have a long survival.

Temozolomide Plus Bevacizumab in Elderly Patients with Newly Diagnosed Glioblastoma and Poor Performance Status: An ANOCEF Phase II Trial (ATAG).

Lessons Learned: Results suggest that the combination of bevacizumab plus temozolomide is active in terms of response rate, survival, performance, quality of life, and cognition in elderly patients with glioblastoma multiforme with poor performance status.Whether this combination is superior to temozolomide alone remains to be demonstrated by a randomized study.

Background: The optimal treatment of glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) in patients aged ≥70 years with a Karnofsky performance status (KPS) <70 is not established.

Antineoplastic agents exacerbating Charcot Marie Tooth disease: red flags to avoid permanent disability.

Background: Charcot Marie Tooth (CMT) disease is the most common form of hereditary neuropathy. Due to the high prevalence of mild and undiagnosed forms, patients with CMT disease may be exposed to severe neurotoxicity following the administration of neurotoxic chemotherapies. The aim of this report is to alert oncologists to the potential to precipitate severe irreversible peripheral neuropathies when administering neurotoxic compounds to undiagnosed CMT patients.

Relationships Between Dose Intensity, Toxicity, and Outcome in Patients with Oligodendroglial Tumors Treated with the PCV Regimen.

Background/aim: The drug combination of procarbazine, lomustine (CCNU) and vincristine (PCV) has been associated with efficacy in oligodendroglial gliomas (OG) when added to radiotherapy as the first line of treatment, despite the important toxicity of this treatment schedule. The aim of the present study was to analyze the tolerance, feasibility and impact of the dose intensity of the PCV regimen on outcome for patients with OG.

Patients And Methods: We retrospectively reviewed all patients with OG receiving PCV (CCNU=110 mg/m(2)) who were referred to our two Institutions.

Dural Arteriovenous Fistula Mimicking a Brainstem Glioma.

Background: Brainstem intracranial dural arteriovenous fistulas are extremely rare and can mimic a glioma at the time of presentation.

Case: We report a patient with an infiltrating brainstem lesion that finally revealed an intracranial dural arteriovenous fistula, with full neurological improvement after embolization.

Conclusion: A careful radiological study looking for dilated vessels around the brainstem is necessary in the workup of an infiltrating brainstem lesion, in order to rule out intracranial dural arteriovenous fistula.

Significant heterogeneity in the geographical distribution of diffuse grade II/III gliomas in France.

Diffuse WHO grade II and III gliomas (DGII/IIIG) are rare tumors, with few specific epidemiological studies. We aimed at describing the geographical distribution of a homogeneous series of histologically confirmed DGII/IIIG, over a four-year period (2006-2009), at a national level. The methodology is based on a multidisciplinary national network already established by the French Brain Tumor DataBase and data collected directly from every neuropathology department.

Temozolomide after radiotherapy in recurrent "low grade" diffuse brainstem glioma in adults.

Diffuse brainstem glioma is a rare disease in adults. Radiotherapy (RT) is usually considered to be the standard treatment. However, the role of chemotherapy in treating relapses after RT is unclear, and this study aimed to assess the use of temozolomide (TMZ) in this situation.

Contrast enhancement in 1p/19q-codeleted anaplastic oligodendrogliomas is associated with 9p loss, genomic instability, and angiogenic gene expression.

Background: The aim of this study was to correlate MRI features and molecular characteristics in anaplastic oligodendrogliomas (AOs).

Methods: The MRI characteristics of 50 AO patients enrolled in the French national network for high-grade oligodendroglial tumors were analyzed. The genomic profiles and IDH mutational statuses were assessed using high-resolution single-nucleotide polymorphism arrays and direct sequencing, respectively.

Molecular analysis of diffuse intrinsic brainstem gliomas in adults.

Diffuse intrinsic brainstem gliomas (DIBG) account for 1-2 % of adult gliomas. Their biological characteristics are scarcely understood and whether DIBG are biologically different from supratentorial gliomas remains to be established. We analyzed 17 DIBG samples for IDH1 R132H, alpha internexin, p53, and Ki67 expression, and, in a subset with sufficient DNA amount, for IDH1 and histone H3 mutational status, genomic profiling and MGMT promoter methylation status.

Response assessment in recurrent glioblastoma treated with irinotecan-bevacizumab: comparative analysis of the Macdonald, RECIST, RANO, and RECIST + F criteria.

Traditionally, the most widely used criteria for response assessment in glioblastoma have been Macdonald and the Response Evaluation Criteria In Solid Tumors (RECIST). Recently, new criteria addressing contrast enhancement and fluid-attenuated inversion recovery (FLAIR)/T2 hyperintensity have been defined (the Response Assessment in Neuro-Oncology criteria) to better evaluate the effect of antiangiogenic therapy. Whether FLAIR/T2 imaging could also be helpful to refine RECIST criteria remains unresolved.

Adult brainstem gliomas.

Brainstem gliomas are uncommon in adults and account for only 1%-2% of intracranial gliomas. They represent a heterogeneous group of tumors that differ from those found in their pediatric counterparts. In adults, a low-grade phenotype predominates, which is a feature that likely explains their better prognosis compared to that in children.

[Anti-NMDA receptor paraneoplastic encephalitis: complete recovery after ovarian teratoma removal].

Introduction: A paraneoplastic syndrome characterized by neuropsychiatric symptoms, involuntary movements and seizures has been recently associated with antibodies targeting NMDA (N-methyl-D-aspartate) receptor in patients with an ovarian teratoma. Severe neurological impairment is frequent and treatment in the intensive care unit is often required because of ventilatory failure and life-threatening autonomic instability. Tumor removal is curative in many cases and neurological improvement is demonstrated shortly after surgery.