Preoperative imaging features: Are they useful tools for predicting IDH1 mutation status in gliomas Grades II-IV?

Background: It is already known that gliomas biomolecular parameters have a reliable prognostic value. However, an invasive procedure is required to determine them. Our aim was to better understand the clinical characteristics of gliomas Grades II-IV and to assess the usefulness of imaging features in magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to predict the isocitrate dehydrogenase one (IDH1) mutation. Methods: Preoperative MRI characteristics were retrospectively reviewed and molecular diagnosis of gliomas was tested in adult patients between 2014 and 2021 in two institutions. We applied a biological criterion to divide the brain in cerebral compartments. Results: A total of 108 patients met the inclusion criteria. Contrast enhancement (CE) in MRI was significantly associated with wild-type IDH1 (IDH1-Wt) (P < 0.00002). Furthermore, the positive predictive value of CE for IDH1-Wt was of 87.1%. On the other hand, the negative predictive value of non-CE for mutated IDH1 (IDH1-Mut) was of 52.6%; 60.2% of gliomas were located in the neocortical and 24.1% in the allocortical/mesocortical telencephalon. Considering gliomas Grades II-III, 66.7% of IDH1-Mut and 28.6% of IDH1-Wt gliomas were located in the neocortex, without statistical significance. Conclusion: Our research revealed that CE is useful for predicting IDH1-Wt in gliomas. On the contrary, nonCE is not useful for predicting IDH1-Mut gliomas. Thus, the traditional concept of associating non-CE MRI with a low-grade glioma should be reviewed, as it can lead to an underestimation of the potential aggressiveness of the tumor. If this association was validated with the future prospective studies, a noninvasive tool would be available for predicting gliomas IDH1 mutation status.

Algoritmo para el diagnóstico integrado de los gliomas 2021. Nuestra experiencia / Algorithm for the integrated diagnosis of gliomas 2021. Our experience

Resumen La aplicación de las diferentes técnicas moleculares para el diagnóstico de los gliomas según la clasificación de la OMS, sigue sin estar al alcance de todos en nuestro país. Nuestro objetivo fue describir el protocolo diagnóstico desarrollado en función de los recursos disponibles, conforme con la clasificación vigente (2021). También, describir el perfil epidemiológico de los gliomas diagnosticados entre 2018-2021 en el Instituto Roffo y contrastarlo con la literatura. Se evaluó la mutación en IDH1-R132H, ATRX, el estado del 1p19q, CDKN2A, EGFR y del p53. Se incluyeron 94 pacientes, 53.2% fueron masculinos, con una edad promedio de 50.9 años. El diagnóstico más frecuente fue el de GB IDH1-no mutado (63.8%). Considerando únicamente a los gliomas grado 2 y 3, el astrocitoma difuso IDH1-Mutado/ATRX-Mutado/p53-sobreexpresado, grado 2 (11.7%) fue el más frecuente. En cuanto a su localización, el 67% de los tumores se ubicaron en el telencéfalo neocortical: 24.5% del total en el lóbulo frontal. En el 95.7% de los casos se arribó a un diagnóstico integrado concluyente siguiendo el algoritmo propuesto. Las características epidemiológicas coinciden con lo publicado en la literatura. La biología molecular nos permitió diferenciar nítidamente enfermedades que suponíamos emparentadas desde un punto de vista histológico, pero que observando su historia natural, su genética y su respuesta a tratamientos instaurados eran tumores distintos, aunque todos fueran llamados "gliomas". Los estándares internacionales no conciben su diagnóstico sin la biología molecular. No es aceptable que se siga diagnosticando únicamente con estándares histológicos. El algoritmo propuesto podría ser una alternativa viable y confiable.

Abstract The utilization of the different molecular techniques for the diagnosis of gliomas according to the WHO classification is still not available to everyone in our country. Our objective was to describe the diagnostic algorithm devel oped based on available resources, in accordance with the current classification (2021). Also, to describe the epidemiological profile of gliomas diagnosed between 2018-2021 at the Roffo Institute and compare it with the international literature. IDH1-R132H and ATRX mutation, as well as 1p19q status, CDKN2A, EGFR, and p53 were evaluated. 94 patients were included, 53.2% were male, with a mean age of 50.9 years. The most frequent diagnosis was GB IDH1-wild type (63.8%). Considering only grade 2 and 3 gliomas, diffuse astrocytoma IDH1- Mutated / ATRX-Mutated / p53-overexpressed, grade 2 (11.7%) was the most frequent diagnosis. Regarding their location, 67% of the tumors were located in the neocortical telencephalon: 24.5% of the total in the frontal lobe. In 95.7% of cases, a conclusive integrated diagnosis was reached following the proposed algorithm. The epidemiological characteristics coincide with what has been published in the literature. Molecular biology allowed us to clearly differentiate pathologies that we assumed were related from a histological point of view, but which, observing their natural history, their genetics and their response to established treatments were different tumors, although they were all called "gliomas". International standards do not conceive CNS tumor diagnosis without molecular biology. It is not acceptable to continue to diagnose only with histological standards. The proposed algorithm could be a viable and reliable alternative.

[Algorithm for the integrated diagnosis of gliomas 2021. Our experience]. / Algoritmo para el diagnóstico integrado de los gliomas 2021. Nuestra experiencia.

The utilization of the different molecular techniques for the diagnosis of gliomas according to the WHO classification is still not available to everyone in our country. Our objective was to describe the diagnostic algorithm developed based on available resources, in accordance with the current classification (2021). Also, to describe the epidemiological profile of gliomas diagnosed between 2018-2021 at the Roffo Institute and compare it with the international literature. IDH1-R132H and ATRX mutation, as well as 1p19q status, CDKN2A, EGFR, and p53 were evaluated. 94 patients were included, 53.2% were male, with a mean age of 50.9 years. The most frequent diagnosis was GB IDH1-wild type (63.8%). Considering only grade 2 and 3 gliomas, diffuse astrocytoma IDH1-Mutated / ATRX-Mutated / p53-overexpressed, grade 2 (11.7%) was the most frequent diagnosis. Regarding their location, 67% of the tumors were located in the neocortical telencephalon: 24.5% of the total in the frontal lobe. In 95.7% of cases, a conclusive integrated diagnosis was reached following the proposed algorithm. The epidemiological characteristics coincide with what has been published in the literature. Molecular biology allowed us to clearly differentiate pathologies that we assumed were related from a histological point of view, but which, observing their natural history, their genetics and their response to established treatments were different tumors, although they were all called "gliomas". International standards do not conceive CNS tumor diagnosis without molecular biology. It is not acceptable to continue to diagnose only with histological standards. The proposed algorithm could be a viable and reliable alternative.

La aplicación de las diferentes técnicas moleculares para el diagnóstico de los gliomas según la clasificación de la OMS, sigue sin estar al alcance de todos en nuestro país. Nuestro objetivo fue describir el protocolo diagnóstico desarrollado en función de los recursos disponibles, conforme con la clasificación vigente (2021). También, describir el perfil epidemiológico de los gliomas diagnosticados entre 2018-2021 en el Instituto Roffo y contrastarlo con la literatura. Se evaluó la mutación en IDH1-R132H, ATRX, el estado del 1p19q, CDKN2A, EGFR y del p53. Se incluyeron 94 pacientes, 53.2% fueron masculinos, con una edad promedio de 50.9 años. El diagnóstico más frecuente fue el de GB IDH1-no mutado (63.8%). Considerando únicamente a los gliomas grado 2 y 3, el astrocitoma difuso IDH1-Mutado/ATRX-Mutado/p53-sobreexpresado, grado 2 (11.7%) fue el más frecuente. En cuanto a su localización, el 67% de los tumores se ubicaron en el telencéfalo neocortical: 24.5% del total en el lóbulo frontal. En el 95.7% de los casos se arribó a un diagnóstico integrado concluyente siguiendo el algoritmo propuesto. Las características epidemiológicas coinciden con lo publicado en la literatura. La biología molecular nos permitió diferenciar nítidamente enfermedades que suponíamos emparentadas desde un punto de vista histológico, pero que observando su historia natural, su genética y su respuesta a tratamientos instaurados eran tumores distintos, aunque todos fueran llamados "gliomas". Los estándares internacionales no conciben su diagnóstico sin la biología molecular. No es aceptable que se siga diagnosticando únicamente con estándares histológicos. El algoritmo propuesto podría ser una alternativa viable y confiable.

Effects of time to chemoradiation on high-grade gliomas from the Buenos Aires Metropolitan Area.

High-Grade Gliomas (HGG) are the most frequent brain tumor in adults. The gold standard of clinical care recommends beginning chemoradiation within 6 weeks of surgery. Disparities in access to healthcare in Argentina are notorious, often leading to treatment delays. We conducted this retrospective study to evaluate if time to chemoradiation after surgery is correlated with progression-free survival (PFS). Our study included clinical cases with a histological diagnosis of Glioblastoma (GBM), Anaplastic Astrocytoma (AA) or High-Grade Glioma (HGG) in patients over 18 years of age from 2014 to 2020. We collected data on clinical presentation, type of resection, time to surgery, time to chemoradiation, location within the Buenos Aires Metropolitan Area (BAMA) and type of health insurance. We found 63 patients that fit our inclusion criteria, including 26 (41.3%) females and 37 (58.7%) males. Their median age was 54 years old (19-86). Maximal safe resection was achieved in 49.2% (n = 31) of the patients, incomplete resection in 34.9% (n = 22) and the other 15.9% (n = 10) received a biopsy, but no resection. The type of health care insurance was almost evenly divided, with 55.6% (n = 35) of the patients having public vs. 44.4% (n = 28) having private health insurance. Median time to chemoradiation after surgery was 8 (CI 6.68-9.9) weeks for the global population. When we ordered the patients PFS by time to chemoradiation we found that there was a statistically significant effect of time to chemoradiation on patient PFS. Patients had a PFS of 10 months (p = 0.014) (CI 6.89-13.10) when they received chemoradiation <5 weeks vs a PFS of 7 months (CI 4.93-9.06) when they received chemoradiation between 5 to 8 weeks and a PFS of 4 months (CI 3.76-4.26 HR 2.18 p = 0.006) when they received chemoradiation >8 weeks after surgery. Also, our univariate and multivariate analysis found that temporal lobe location (p = 0.03), GMB histology (p = 0.02) and biopsy as surgical intervention (p = 0.02) all had a statistically significant effect on patient PFS. Thus, time to chemoradiation is an important factor in patient PFS. Our data show that although an increase in HGG severity contributes to a decrease in patient PFS, there is also a large effect of time to chemoradiation. Our results suggest that we can improve patient PFS by making access to healthcare in Buenos Aires more equitable by reducing the average time to chemoradiation following tumor resection.

[Surgery for intracranial meningiomas in patients older than 80 years]. / Chirurgie des méningiomes intracrâniens après 80 ans.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate surgery for intracranial meningiomas in very elderly patients. METHOD: We retrospectively reviewed the clinical, radiological and therapeutic data of patients older than 80 years who underwent surgery for symptomatic intracranial meningioma at our institution between May 1998 and February 2005. We estimated operative mortality and morbidity and patients' functional status at 3 months and one year after surgery as well as at their last clinical evaluation. RESULTS: Eleven patients met these inclusion criteria: 5 men and 6 women, with a mean age of 83 years (range: 81-87 years). There was no perioperative mortality and one patient with perioperative morbidity (hemiplegia). Three months after surgery, the condition of 6 patients had improved, while it had not changed for 4 and had worsened for one. One year after surgery, 5 had improved, 5 were unchanged, and one patient had died. Of the 10 patients alive one year after surgery, 8 had Karnofsky scores> or =80 (self-sufficient). Three patients died more than one year after surgery of causes unrelated to their meningioma. CONCLUSION: Old age does not contraindicate surgery for intracranial meningiomas. Surgery should be proposed for patients older than 80 years with symptomatic intracranial meningioma.