The disparity in pediatric spinal cord tumor clinical trials: A scoping review of registered clinical trials from 1989 to 2023.

Background: Spinal cord tumors (SCTs) comprise 10% of all central nervous system (CNS) tumors. Pediatric SCTs are often excluded and underrepresented in clinical trials though exclusion rates haven't been reported.

Methods: We reviewed all interventional clinical trials recruiting patients <21 years with SCTs on ClinicalTrials.gov between 1989 and 2023.

Results: Five hundred and two CNS tumor trials were identified, of which 255 included SCTs and/or spincal metastases. Among these, 96.5% were open to all CNS tumors (brain or spine); however, only 3.5% were exclusive to spine tumors. One trial was specific to pediatric spine tumors (inclusive of bone, soft tissue, and neural tumors); no trial was specific to primary pediatric SCTs. Most trials were located in North America, with multisite investigations being more common than single-institution designs. Trials frequently evaluated interventions/treatments (89%), supportive care/quality of life measures (7.1%), or diagnostic protocols (3.1%). Among included treatment paradigms, systemic therapies using cytotoxic chemotherapies, targeted therapies, and/or immunotherapies were more common among brain/spine trials, while radiotherapy, surgical adjuncts, and/or local drug delivery more frequently occurred in spinal tumor trials.

Conclusions: Though SCTs comprise 10% of pediatric CNS tumors, they remain underrepresented in clinical trials. This lack of trials specific to advancing pediatric SCTs management highlights an area of clinical and research need.