Genetic Characteristics of Mismatch Repair-deficient Glioblastoma.

Mismatch repair (MMR) gene deficiency is rarely observed in gliomas, a constitutional defect is associated with tumorigenesis in Lynch syndrome, and an acquired defect is associated with hypermutation after temozolomide treatment. However, the meaning of MMR gene deficiency in gliomas is unclear. Two cases of MMR-deficient glioblastomas are reported, and mutational status of oncogenes was compared between primary and recurrent tumor samples in a glioblastoma patient with Lynch syndrome.

Utility of monitoring the serum levetiracetam concentration for intraoperative seizure control during awake craniotomy.

Awake craniotomy is an established procedure for resecting brain tumors in eloquent lesions, and intraoperative seizure is one of the most important complications. Phenytoin is normally used to control intraoperative seizures. Recently, phenytoin was replaced with levetiracetam at our institution because the latter has fewer side effects.

Bone marrow metastasis of glioblastoma multiforme mimicking acute myeloid leukemia.

A 46-year-old female patient with glioblastoma multiforme (GBM), IDH wild type developed severe pancytopenia 5 months after postoperative chemoradiotherapy. Bone marrow aspirate showed normocellular marrow with 70.0% abnormal cells, which suggested the possibility of acute myeloid leukemia.

Dissociation of the subjective and objective bodies: Out-of-body experiences following the development of a posterior cingulate lesion.

An out-of-body experience (OBE) is a phenomenon whereby an individual views his/her body and the world from a location outside the physical body. Previous studies have suggested that the temporoparietal junction (TPJ), the brain region responsible for integrating multisensory signals, is responsible for OBE development. Here, however, we first present a case of OBE after brain tumour development in the posterior cingulate cortex (PCC).

Biased Recognition of Surprised Facial Expressions Following Awake Craniotomy of a Right Temporal Lobe Tumor.

Lesion studies have shown that the right temporal lobe is crucial for recognition of facial expressions, particularly fear expressions. However, in previous studies, premorbid abilities of the patients were unknown and the effects of epileptic discharge could not be excluded. Herein, we report a case of a patient who underwent assessments of facial recognition before and after brain surgery and exhibited biased recognition of facial expressions.

Continuous intrathecal injection therapy of methotrexate is a therapeutic option in primary CNS lymphoma.

Primary central nervous system lymphoma (PCNSL) is a rare subtype of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, and its prognosis is still very poor despite the conventional therapy of high-dose methotrexate (HD-MTX) followed by whole-brain radiation therapy (WBRT). The purpose of the present study was to evaluate the survival benefit of continuous intrathecal injection therapy of methotrexate (CIT-MTX) combined with the conventional therapy. A total of 26 PCNSL patients treated with CIT-MTX were analyzed.

Preservation of cranial nerve function following awake surgery for benign brain tumors in 22 consecutive patients.

Background: Preservation of cranial nerve function in patients with benign tumors such as meningiomas and vestibular schwannomas remains difficult following microsurgery.

Methods: In this study, awake surgery was performed in 22 consecutive patients with meningiomas or vestibular schwannomas that compressed cranial nerves (I-XII). Improved, unchanged, or deteriorated cranial nerve function after surgery was evaluated.

Measuring the sense of self in brain-damaged patients: A STROBE-compliant article.

Recently, researchers have focused on the embodied sense of self (ESS), which consists of the minimal and narrative selves. Although a study demonstrated that the ESS is related to brain dysfunction empirically, the subjective aspects of the ESS, and a systematic approach to it, have not yet been examined in brain-damaged patients. To examine this, we measured the ESS of patients with brain tumors before and after awake craniotomy.

JCOG0911 INTEGRA study: a randomized screening phase II trial of interferonβ plus temozolomide in comparison with temozolomide alone for newly diagnosed glioblastoma.

Purpose: This study explored the superiority of temozolomide (TMZ) + interferonβ (IFNβ) to standard TMZ as treatment for newly diagnosed glioblastoma (GBM) via randomized phase II screening design.

Experimental Design: Eligibility criteria included histologically proven GBM, with 50% of the tumor located in supratentorial areas, without involvement of the optic, olfactory nerves, and pituitary gland and without multiple lesions and dissemination. Patients in the TMZ + radiotherapy (RT) arm received RT (2.

A case report of adult cerebellar high-grade glioma with H3.1 K27M mutation: a rare example of an H3 K27M mutant cerebellar tumor.

Diffuse midline glioma, H3 K27M mutant, is newly recognized as a distinct category, which usually arises in the brain stem, thalamus or spinal cord of children, and young adults. The oncogenic H3 K27M mutation involves H3.3 (encoded by H3F3A) or H3.

Preservation of hearing following awake surgery via the retrosigmoid approach for vestibular schwannomas in eight consecutive patients.

Background: Hearing preservation in patients with vestibular schwannomas remains difficult by microsurgery or radiosurgery.

Method: In this study, awake surgery via the retrosigmoid approach was performed for vestibular schwannomas (volume, 11.6 ± 11.

Operative Strategies during Awake Surgery Affect Deterioration of Paresis a Month after Surgery for Brain Lesions in the Primary Motor Area.

 We analyzed factors associated with worsened paresis at 1-month follow-up in patients with brain tumors located in the primary motor area (M1) to establish protocols for safe awake craniotomy for M1 lesions.  Patients with M1 brain tumors who underwent awake surgery in our hospital ( = 61) were evaluated before, during, and immediately and 1 month after surgery for severity of paresis, tumor location, extent of resection, complications, preoperative motor strength, histology, and operative strategies (surgery stopped or continued after deterioration of motor function).  Worsened paresis at 1-month follow-up was significantly associated with worsened paresis immediately after surgery and also with operative strategy.

A case of osteoclast-like giant cell-rich epithelioid glioblastoma with BRAF V600E mutation.

Epithelioid glioblastomas (E-GBMs) are rare, highly aggressive tumors consisting of closely packed tumor cells with smooth, round cell borders and abundant eosinophilic cytoplasm. They tend to affect younger patients compared with conventional GBM. BRAF V600E mutation is characteristically found in approximately 50% of all E-GBMs, compared with a low frequency of this mutation in conventional GBM.

Predicting sleepiness during an awake craniotomy.

Objective: An awake craniotomy is a safe neurological surgical technique that minimizes the risk of brain damage. During the course of this surgery, the patient is asked to perform motor or cognitive tasks, but some patients exhibit severe sleepiness. Thus, the present study investigated the predictive value of a patient's preoperative neuropsychological background in terms of sleepiness during an awake craniotomy.

Awake craniotomy for brain lesions within and near the primary motor area: A retrospective analysis of factors associated with worsened paresis in 102 consecutive patients.

Background: We analyzed factors associated with worsened paresis in a large series of patients with brain lesions located within or near the primary motor area (M1) to establish protocols for safe, awake craniotomy of eloquent lesions.

Methods: We studied patients with brain lesions involving M1, the premotor area (PMA) and the primary sensory area (S1), who underwent awake craniotomy (n = 102). In addition to evaluating paresis before, during, and one month after surgery, the following parameters were analyzed: Intraoperative complications; success or failure of awake surgery; tumor type (A or B), tumor location, tumor histology, tumor size, and completeness of resection.

Prognostic factors and treatment effects in patients with curatively resected brain metastasis from colorectal cancer.

Background: Colorectal cancer infrequently causes brain metastasis, and the prognosis is poor.

Objective: The aim of this study was to identify the prognostic factors associated with survival and outcome of treatment for patients with brain metastasis from colorectal cancer.

Design: This is a retrospective study from a prospectively collected database.

Toxicity and outcome of radiotherapy with concomitant and adjuvant temozolomide in elderly patients with glioblastoma: a retrospective study.

Radiation therapy with concomitant and adjuvant temozolomide (TMZ) is the standard therapy for nonelderly patients with glioblastoma. However, TMZ-based chemoradiotherapy for elderly patients with glioblastoma is controversial. The aim of this study was to investigate the benefits and adverse effects of this combined therapy in elderly patients with glioblastoma.

The right dorsal anterior cingulate cortex may play a role in anxiety disorder and visual function.

Recent investigation suggests that the dorsal anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) is involved in the interplay between cognition and emotion. The present study described three patients who underwent removal of brain tumors just above the right dorsal ACC. These patients had residual tumor following surgery and showed anxiety disorder (AD) both before and after surgery.

Damage to the left ventral, arcuate fasciculus and superior longitudinal fasciculus-related pathways induces deficits in object naming, phonological language function and writing, respectively.

The anatomic localization of brain functions can be characterized via diffusion tensor imaging in patients with brain tumors and neurological symptoms. The goal of the present study was to evaluate the function of the ventral, arcuate fasciculus (AF) and the superior longitudinal fasciculus (SLF)-related language pathways using these techniques by analyzing 9 patients treated in our hospital between 2007 and 2011. In cases 1-3, the left ventral pathways, namely, the inferior longitudinal fasciculus, uncinate fasciculus or inferior fronto-occipital fasciculus, were mainly damaged, and the common dysfunction experienced by these patients was a deficit in object naming.

Phase II study of single-agent bevacizumab in Japanese patients with recurrent malignant glioma.

Objective: This single-arm, open-label, Phase II study evaluated the efficacy and safety of single-agent bevacizumab, a monoclonal antibody against vascular endothelial growth factor, in Japanese patients with recurrent malignant glioma.

Methods: Patients with histologically confirmed, measurable glioblastoma or World Health Organization Grade III glioma, previously treated with temozolomide plus radiotherapy, received 10 mg/kg bevacizumab intravenous infusion every 2 weeks. The primary endpoint was 6-month progression-free survival in the patients with recurrent glioblastoma.

The left superior longitudinal fasciculus within the primary sensory area of inferior parietal lobe plays a role in dysgraphia of kana omission within sentences.

Functional neurological changes after surgery combined with diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) tractography can directly provide evidence of anatomical localization of brain function. Using these techniques, a patient with dysgraphia before surgery was analyzed at our hospital in 2011. The patient showed omission of kana within sentences before surgery, which improved after surgery.

Right temporal lobe plays a role in verbal memory.

Objectives: Comparison of preoperative and postoperative neurological functions in patients undergoing resection of brain tumors, in combination with data from diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) studies, can provide direct evidence of anatomical localization of brain function. The goal of the present study was to use these techniques to characterize memory function of the right temporal lobe in five patients with right temporal lobe brain tumors.

Methods: Memory function was tested using the Wechsler Memory Scale-Revised (WMS-R) before and after surgery in five patients with right temporal lobe brain tumors.