School of Medicine Publications and Presentations
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
5-29-2025
Abstract
Background: Brain tumors are among the most common neoplasms in children. These patients suffer from neurocognitive impairment, treatment-related side effects, and experience a subpar quality of life (QoL), affecting academic endeavors, social interaction, and mental wellbeing.
Methods: This review investigated different long-term neurocognitive and behavioral outcomes in pediatric brain tumor survivors and evaluated various effective treatment methods. We identified 75 relevant articles published between 2019 and 2024 using PubMed, PMC, Embase, and Google Scholar databases. Duplicates were removed, and 14 studies were finally selected following the PRISMA guidelines. Initial observations noted significant variations in the study methodologies and inclusion criteria.
Results: Our study showed that children treated with proton radiotherapy experienced better neurocognitive and academic results than those treated with photon radiotherapy. Cognitive abilities were affected irrespective of the treatment, especially in early stage radiotherapy. Psychosocial impacts such as low self-esteem, depressive symptoms, and increased suicidal ideation were also demonstrated. Improvement in long-term outcomes was noted within therapeutic plans devoid of delayed high-dose radiotherapy and marrow ablation chemotherapy.
Discussion: Increasing our understanding of the long-term effects associated with brain tumors using our current treatment methodology will help us formulate better treatment protocols and improve survivors’ quality of life.
Recommended Citation
Patel, T., Johar, P., Kanisetti, V., Talacheru, S., Avinash, V., Das, A., ... & Gadad, B. S. (2025). Long-term neurocognitive and behavioral outcomes in survivors of pediatric brain tumors: a systematic review. Frontiers in Neuroscience, 19, 1587059. https://doi.org/10.3389/fnins.2025.1587059
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Publication Title
Frontiers in Neuroscience Sections
DOI
10.3389/fnins.2025.1587059
Academic Level
faculty
Comments
© 2025 Patel, Johar, Kanisetti, Talacheru, Avinash, Das, Sahu, Goyal, Szobody, Sayers, Gullapalli, Yallapu, Shaikh, Anand, Potter-Baker and Gadad. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) and the copyright owner(s) are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.