Microsurgical management and prognosis of primary spinal cord glioblastoma

Abstract

Objective To explore the microsurgical management and prognosis of primary intramedullary glioblastoma.Methods The clinical datas of 15 patients with primary intramedullary glioblastoma who accepted microsurgical treatment were analyzed retrospectively.Results Mostly resection was performed in 5 cases,and partial resection in 10.14 patients were treated with postoperative radiotherapy and/or chemotherapy.All patients died during the follow-up period.3 of 11 cases with clear cause of death died of postoperative complications,8 cases died of spinal cord and brain metastases.By Kaplan-Meier analysis,the median survival for all patients,Mostly resection subgroup and partial resection subgroup was 11 months,12 months and 11 months,respectively.The difference in the survival duration between mostly and partial resection did not reach statistical significance (P ＞ 0.05).Conclusions Primary spinal glioblastoma is a rare disease,with an aggressive course and poor prognosis.The purpose of operation is to confirm the pathologic diagnosis,reduce tumor burden,and relieve the symptoms.An aggressive comprehensive treatment (such as postoperative radiotherapy,chemotherapy protocols) should be performed to extend the patient's survival duration with better quality of life. Key words: Glioblastoma; Spinal cord ; Primary; Surgical management ; Prognosis