Multimodality treatment of brain metastases: an institutional survival analysis of 275 patients
2011

Survival Analysis of Brain Metastases Treatments

Sample size: 275 publication Evidence: moderate

Author Information

Author(s): Elaimy Ameer L, Mackay Alexander R, Lamoreaux Wayne T, Fairbanks Robert K, Demakas John J, Cooke Barton S, Peressini Benjamin J, Holbrook John T, Lee Christopher M

Primary Institution: Cancer Care Northwest

Hypothesis

What factors influence the survival of patients with brain metastases treated with different modalities?

Conclusion

Patients treated with a combined modality approach, particularly SRS alone or resection with SRS, showed better survival outcomes compared to those treated with WBRT alone.

Supporting Evidence

  • Patients treated with SRS alone had a median survival of 9.4 months.
  • Patients treated with WBRT alone had a median survival of 4.3 months.
  • Survival favored patients <65 years of age with a median survival of 11 months.
  • ECOG-PS class 0 patients had a median survival of 22 months.

Takeaway

This study looked at how different treatments for brain cancer affect how long patients live. It found that some treatments work better than others.

Methodology

The study analyzed treatment regimens, age, ECOG-PS, primary tumor histology, number of brain metastases, and total volume of brain metastases using statistical methods including Kaplan-Meier survival curves and Cox proportional hazard models.

Limitations

ECOG-PS class was not recorded for 162 patients and total tumor volume was not recorded for 151 patients.

Participant Demographics

Median age was 60 years, with a range from 29 to 86 years; non-small-cell lung cancer was the most common primary tumor histology.

Statistical Information

P-Value

p<0.001

Confidence Interval

95% CI, 1.37-2.73

Statistical Significance

p<0.001

Digital Object Identifier (DOI)

10.1186/1477-7819-9-69

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