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Ever since removal of an intracranial astrocytoma diagnosed by neurologic localization in 1884, the management of malignant gliomas of the brain has represented a major challenge for neurosurgery. Malignant gliomas are the most common primary form of brain tumor. These difficult lesions account for a major problem and public health and in North America virtually everyone is acquainted with an individual or family member who has suffered from a primary brain tumor. New prevalence data indicate that the number of patients living with some form of brain tumor may be as high as 30 per 100,000 in the United States [5]. Among the malignant gliomas, approximately 30% are low grade, with the remainder being anaplastic lesions, the most common of which is the glioblastoma multiforme [6, 11]. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]