CEREBELLAR MEDULLOBLASTOMAS - A COMPARISON BETWEEN ADULTS AND CHILDREN

A retrospective analysis of 19 medulloblastomas in patients aged 2 to 24 years was conducted employing 14 children (<15 years old) and 5 adu lts. All patients received gross total excision of the tumour with pos toperative craniospinal irradiation. The patients were then followed u p for more than 5 years. To determine which factors influenced the pro gnosis of these two age groups, we analysed the differences of the pro liferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA), the degree of tumour invasion and the outcome between adult and childhood medulloblastomas. In summa ry, medulloblastomas in adults and children had similar cell prolifera tive activity and long term survival rates but the tumours with brain stem invasion, which commonly occurred in children, had an early recur rence rate and a poor prognosis. The prognosis of medulloblastoma may depend upon the degree of tumour invasion the brain stem.