A RANDOMIZED TRIAL OF RADIOTHERAPY VERSUS RADIOTHERAPY PLUS CCNU FOR INCOMPLETELY RESECTED LOW-GRADE GLIOMAS - A SOUTHWEST-ONCOLOGY-GROUP STUDY

Sixty adult patients with incompletely excised low-grade gliomas were randomly assigned to receive radiotherapy (55 Gv over a total of 6 1/2 to 7 weeks) either alone or with 1-(2-chloroethyl)-3-cyclohexyl-1-nit rosourea (CCNU; 100 mg/sq m every 6 weeks). Pathological review showed that six patients were ineligible for the study. Evaluation of patien t age, extent of surgery, tumor grade, and performance status showed n o significant differences between the treatment arms. The response rat e, as judged by the disappearance or reduction in size of the tumor on computerized tomography scans, was 79% for radiation therapy alone ve rsus 54% for irradiation plus CCNU. The median survival time was 4.45 years for all patients, with no significant difference between treatme nt arms (p = 0.7). For the group as a whole, patient age and performan ce status were the most important prognostic parameters. The majority of patients receiving chemotherapy experienced moderate hematological toxicity. This study demonstrates that CCNU chemotherapy does not impr ove the results of radiation therapy in the treatment of incompletely excised low-grade gliomas.