Evolution of Systemic Therapy in Medulloblastoma Including Irradiation-Sparing Approaches

Abstract

The management of medulloblastoma in children has dramatically changed over the past four decades, with the development of chemotherapy protocols aiming at improving survival and reducing long-term toxicities of high-dose craniospinal radiotherapy. While the staging and treatment of medulloblastoma were until recently based on the modified Chang’s system, recent advances in the molecular biology of medulloblastoma have revolutionized approaches in the management of this increasingly complex disease. The evolution of systemic therapies is described in this review.

Keywords

• medulloblastoma
• subgrouping
• chemotherapy
• high-dose chemotherapy