ADVANTAGE OF TREATING ANAPLASTIC GLIOMAS WITH AGGRESSIVE PROTOCOL COMBINING CHEMOTHERAPY AND RADIOTHERAPY

We devised a treatment protocol for anaplastic gliomas consisting of: (a) chemotherapy prior to radiotherapy (b) a second chemotherapy regim en at tumor recurrence (c) repeated surgery whenever possible. 41 Anap lastic Astrocytoma (AA), 16 Anaplastic oligoastrocytoma (AOA) and 14 a naplastic oligodendroglioma (AOD) patients were treated. After surgery all patients received 5-6 cycles of carmustine + Cisplatinum chemothe rapy. Radiotherapy was started during the last 2-3 cycles of chemother apy. 17 patients (30.5%) were reoperated-on at recurrence. All recurri ng patients underwent PVC chemotherapy. At this moment disease recurre d in 56 patients. Median TTP was 24.5, 38.7 and 58.2 months for AA, AO A and AOD respectively. Median ST was 38.8, 71.8 and 73 months. In con clusion our sandwich protocol of prior chemotherapy, overlapping irrad iation with second chemotherapy and, in favourable cases, a second sur gical intervention, is of benefit in patients with anaplastic gliomas.