Researchers have published the first ever 20 year follow-up study on low-grade pediatric glioma patients. Although radiotherapy remains conventional for brain tumors, this study revealed that patients are more likely to die from the effects of radiation before they die from the tumor itself. "We found for the first time that once you survive your childhood with a low-grade glioma, you are not likely to die of that tumor as an adult," senior author Peter Manley said. At the 20 year mark, 90% of patients who did not receive radiation were alive, while only 70% with radiation were alive at the same time point. "We strongly recommend treatments that are less likely to cause long-term effects and second cancers," Manley said. "According to our analysis, radiation was the most common factor linked to differences in mortality among long-term survivors," he added. "There are multiple options available today for treating children with these tumors. We should exhaust all those before considering the use of radiation."
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