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Purpose: There is limited literature describing care coordination for patients with glioblastoma (GBM). We aimed to investigate the impact of primary care and electronic health information exchange (HIE) between neurosurgeons, oncologists, and primary care providers (PCP) on GBM treatment patterns, postoperative outcomes, and survival. Methods: We identified adult GBM patients undergoing primary resection at our institution (2007–2020). HIE was defined as shared electronic medical information between PCPs, oncologists, and neurosurgeons. Multivariate logistic regression analyses were used to determine the effect of PCPs and HIE upon initiation and completion of adjuvant therapy. Kaplan-Meier and multivariate Cox regression models were used to evaluate overall survival (OS). Results: Among 374 patients (mean age ± SD: 57.7 ± 13.5, 39.0% female), 81.0% had a PCP and 62.4% had electronic HIE. In multivariate analyses, having a PCP was associated with initiation (OR: 7.9, P < 0.001) and completion (OR: 4.4, P < 0.001) of 6 weeks of concomitant chemoradiation, as well as initiation (OR: 4.0, P < 0.001) and completion (OR: 3.0, P = 0.007) of 6 cycles of maintenance temozolomide thereafter. Having a PCP (median OS [95%CI]: 14.6[13.1–16.1] vs. 10.8[8.2–13.3] months, P = 0.005) and HIE (15.40[12.82–17.98] vs. 13.80[12.51–15.09] months, P = 0.029) were associated with improved OS relative to counterparts in Kaplan-Meier analysis and in multivariate Cox regression analysis (hazard ratio [HR] = 0.7, [95% CI] 0.5-1.0, P = 0.048). In multivariate analyses, chemoradiation (HR = 0.34, [95% CI] 0.2–0.7, P = 0.002) and maintenance temozolomide (HR = 0.5, 95%CI 0.3–0.8, P = 0.002) were associated with improved OS relative to counterparts. Conclusion: Effective care coordination between neurosurgeons, oncologists, and PCPs may offer a modifiable avenue to improve GBM outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Despite advances in modern medicine, brain tumor patients are still monitored purely by clinical evaluation and imaging. Traditionally, invasive strategies such as open or stereotactic biopsies have been used to confirm the etiology of clinical and imaging changes. Liquid biopsies can enable physicians to noninvasively analyze the evolution of a tumor and a patient's response to specific treatments. However, as a consequence of biology and the current limitations in detection methods, no blood or cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) brain tumor-derived biomarkers are used in routine clinical practice. Enhancing the presence of tumor biomarkers in blood and CSF via brain-blood barrier (BBB) disruption with MRI-guided focused ultrasound (MRgFUS) is a very compelling strategy for future management of brain tumor patients. Methods: A literature review on MRgFUS-enabled brain tumor liquid biopsy was performed using Medline/Pubmed databases and clinical trial registries. Results: The therapeutic applications of MRgFUS to target brain tumors have been under intense investigation. At high-intensity, MRgFUS can ablate brain tumors and target tissues, which needs to be balanced with the increased risk for damage to surrounding normal structures. At lower-intensity and pulsed-frequency, MRgFUS may be able to disrupt the BBB transiently. Thus, while facilitating intratumoral or parenchymal access to standard or novel therapeutics, BBB disruption with MRgFUS has opened the possibility of enhanced detection of brain tumor-derived biomarkers. Conclusions: In this review, we describe the concept of MRgFUS-enabled brain tumor liquid biopsy and present the available preclinical evidence, ongoing clinical trials, limitations, and future directions of this application. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The benefit of radical resections for glioblastoma patients remains a source of contention in the literature. Few studies have been conducted in pediatric patients, and it is becoming increasingly evident that data regarding adult glioblastoma (GB) patients cannot be generalized to pediatric patients affected by this neoplasm. A comparative effectiveness study is performed for different extent of resection (EOR) groups in the largest cohort of pediatric GB (pGB) patients. Methods: The Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) cancer registry was used to identify pGB patients from 1988 through 2009. Multivariate- and multiple propensity score (mPS)-adjusted analyses were used to determine the effect of gross total resection (GTR), partial resection (PR), and biopsy (Bx) on overall survival. Survival prospects were summarized using direct adjusted survival curves. Results: A total of 342 pGB patients were identified, and 35.4 % of patients received a GTR, 28.8 % PR, 17.3 % Bx, and 17.0 % did not undergo surgery. In our cohort, a median overall survival of 12 months was observed with 1-, 2-, and 5-year survival rates of 51.7, 28.3, and 15.7 %, respectively. EOR was a predictor of survival in both the multivariate- ( P < 0.001) and mPS-adjusted model ( P < 0.001). Compared to the GTR group, a higher mortality rate was observed in patients who underwent a PR (HR 1.50; 95 % CI, 1.02-2.21) or Bx (HR 1.87; 95 % CI, 1.18-2.98). There were no significant differences in (adjusted) mortality risk between the PR and Bx groups. Conclusion: Our study suggests that GTR is independently associated with improved survival for pediatric patients with glioblastoma. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Glioblastomas (GBM), one of the most common tumors of the central nervous system, are associated with poor prognosis, even with all the scientific development of the last decades. Individual survival, however, is not homogenous among GBM patients, and multiple factors are related to their outcome, including age, biological characteristics of the tumor, and extent of treatment. Extent of resection (EOR) plays a major role as an independent modifiable factor associated with improved overall and progression-free survival. Achievement of maximal safe resection, removing as much as possible the tumor while preserving the neurological function, is the main goal of the current surgical treatment of GBM. To reach this objective, different technologies and surgical techniques have been introduced in neuro-oncology surgery, including functional neuronavigation systems, ultrasound surgery, intraoperative MRI scan, and intraoperative cortical and subcortical mapping techniques. In the current manuscript, we examine the impact of EOR on the prognosis of GBM patients and the benefits and limitations of modern adjuvant techniques used for resection of these lesions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]