Neurosurgical Options for Glioma
Glioma surgery has been the main component of glioma treatment for decades. The surgi- cal approach changed over time, making it more complex and more challenging. With molecular knowledge and diagnostic improvement, this challenge became maximally safe resection of tumor, which resulted in prolonged overall survival, progression-free period, and a better quality of life. Today, the standard glioma treatment includes maximally safe resection, if feasible, administration of temozolomide, radiotherapy, and chemotherapy. Surgical resection is performed as subtotal resection, gross total resection, and supratotal resection. Subtotal resection is the resection where a part of tumor is left. Gross total resection is a complete removal of the magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) visible tumor tissue. Supratotal resection is performed as gross total resection with excising the MRI visible tumor tissue borders into the unaffected brain tissue. Before we make final decision on which type of resection should be performed, many factors have to be considered. The question has to be answered: what the actual impact of resection on the progression of glioma is and what the functional risk of resection is.