gms | German Medical Science

Objective: Meningiomas located in ventricular cavities are rare benign tumors which are dreaded for their surgically hardly accessible location. Treatment options are radical microsurgery or radiosurgery as alternative treatment option by recurrence. We report on the efficacy of Gamma Knife radiosurgery (GKRS) for the treatment of intraventricular meningiomas.

Methods: From 15 participating centers under the auspices of the European Gamma Knife Society weperformed a retrospective observational analysis of a cohort of 36 benign meningiomas treated with GKRS. All were treated with Gamma Knife radiosurgery at least 5 years before assessment for this study. Clinical and imaging data were retrieved from each center and uniformly entered into a database by 1 author (A.S.).

Results: 29 patients harbouring 36 meningiomas treated in fifteen institutions recruited were evaluated. Themedian age was 50 years. The median tumour volume was 4.4 ccm. The median tumour margin dose to the 50 % isodose line was 15 Gy. The median cumulative imaging follow-up was 53 months. The detailed results from 31 meningiomas (86%) were available for analysis. The actuarial control rate was 100% at 5 years post GKRS. The permanent morbidity rate was 12.9%. A main limitation is the small cohort and the retrospective nature of data retrieval.

Conclusion: GKRS is a safe and not invasive method of treatment of intraventricular meningiomas. The data analyzed shows a high imaging tumor control and low morbidity rate even in the medium to long-term.