Oligodendroglioma Clinical Trials

Oligodendrogliomas typically grow rapidly postdiagnosis, but their growth rate in many cases decreases beyond this point. This feature could be used to identify those patients who would benefit from more intensive treatment.

The incidence rates of oligodendroglioma vary significantly between countries. The incidence rate of oligodendroglioma appears to be lower in Japan, Russia, Italy, Slovenia, Slovakia, and Spain than in the United States. However, the age of onset of sporadic oligodendroglioma was similar among these countries. In the United States, there was no significant difference in the incidence of oligodendroglioma according to race. Therefore, our results suggest that race does not affect the incidence of sporadic oligodendroglioma in the United States.

Oligodendroglial tumors have an overall 5-years survival rate of 59%. The 5-year survival rate among patients with WHO Grade III tumors is 16%, while the 5-year survival rate among patients with WHO Grade II tumors is 68%. Survival rates after surgery are similar between these two groups. In contrast, patients with WHO Grade I tumors have a 5-years survival rate of 91% and 5-years survival rate of 96%. This difference is significant because the 5-year survival rate for those patients with grade I tumors is significantly higher than the 5-year survival rate for patients with grade II tumors.

Oligodendrogliomas are thought to arise via a two-step process involving (1) oligodendrocyte precursor cells expressing PDGFRβ, followed by (2) Oligodendroglioma stem cells expressing GLI2. High expression of GLI2 was shown to occur specifically in oligodendroglioma. Over time, this GLI2 creates a positive feedback loop causing increased proliferation of the tumor. This increases the risk of tumor progression towards anaplasia. Inhibition of the GLI2 pathway could be a novel approach to targeting glioma growth.

Oligodendrogliomas can be treated effectively using modern chemotherapies and radiation. Patients with this disease should continue to receive these therapies because they are effective at prolonging survival.

Fourteen percent of adults who develop epilepsy will eventually receive a diagnosis of [oligodendroglioma](https://www.withpower.com/clinical-trials/oligodendroglioma). This percentage is higher if tumors become symptomatic before age 40 (28%) versus after age 40 (6%). Younger individuals and those with no history of epilepsy are the most likely to develop this type of glioma. The risk of developing oligodendroglioma increases as a function of time from onset of epilepsy. A family history of epilepsy does not increase the risk of development of this type of tumor.

Oligodendrogliomas, like other glial tumors, can present as grade I gliomas (medulloblastoma, astrocytoma, ependymoma); grade II gliomas (astrocytoma, oligodendroglioma); or anaplastic oligodendroglioma. Anaplastic oligodendrogliomas tend to be more aggressive, with poorer prognosis than grade II oligodendrogliomas.

The most common presenting symptom is headache. Other symptoms include focal neurologic deficits, papilledema, visual field defects, gait disturbances, and speech disturbances. An elevated serum lactate dehydrogenase level and poor performance status are common on presentation.

Our observations suggest that anti-CD20 mAb may be used as a target in the therapy of OP. This type of immunotherapy could therefore be considered as a rational extension of standard approaches in the treatment of OP.

Anti-MOG antibody levels were elevated in OOD. Those with higher levels of anti-MOG autologous antibody had an increased risk of developing OOD. Further studies are necessary to determine whether this association is causal or due to shared environmental exposures.

Given the protective role of aspirin against glioblastomas, this study suggests it could also be beneficial in treating glioblastomas. The mechanism by which aspirin reduces glioblastoma progression is unknown but may involve its actions on blood vessels, inflammation, or oxidative stress.