Comparative Brain and Central Nervous System Tumor Incidence and Survival between the United States and Taiwan Based on Population-Based Registry

Abstract

PurposeReasons for worldwide variability in the burden of primary malignant brain and central nervous system (CNS) tumors remain unclear. This study compares the incidence and survival of malignant brain and CNS tumors by selected histologic types between the United States (US) and Taiwan.MethodsData from 2002 to 2010 were selected from two population-based cancer registries for primary malignant brain and CNS tumors: the Central Brain Tumor Registry of the United States and the Taiwan Cancer Registry. Two registries had similar process of collecting patients with malignant brain tumor, and the quality of two registries was comparative. The age-adjusted incidence rate (IR), IR ratio, and survival by histological types, age, and gender were used to study regional differences.ResultsThe overall age-adjusted IRs were 5.91 per 100,000 in the US and 2.68 per 100,000 in Taiwan. The most common histologic type for both countries was glioblastoma (GBM) with a 12.9% higher proportion in the US than in Taiwan. GBM had the lowest survival rate of any histology in both countries (US 1-year survival rate = 37.5%; Taiwan 1-year survival rate = 50.3%). The second largest group was astrocytoma, excluding GBM and anaplastic astrocytoma, with the distribution being slightly higher in Taiwan than in the US.ConclusionOur findings revealed differences by histological type and grade of primary malignant brain and CNS tumors between two sites.

State-of-the-art of microbubble-assisted blood-brain barrier disruption

“…In 2005, the World Health Organization reported that the global burden of neurological diseases exceeded that of cancer, HIV and heart disease 1 . The five primary categories of neuropathologies, ordered by frequency, are cerebrovascular diseases (stroke), neurodegenerative disorders (i.e., Parkinson's, Alzheimer's disease), neuroinfections (meningitis, viral infections), brain cancers (glioblastoma, astrocytoma and glioma) 2 ; and injuries of the central nervous system (CNS), such as traumatic brain injury 3 . Current examples of invasive drug delivery to the CNS include convection-enhanced delivery (CED, intracranial injection), intracerebral implants (Gliadel® BCNU chemotherapeutic wafers), as well as intraventricular, intrathecal and interstitial delivery (e.g., see needle track in Figure 1 A ).…”

Phosphorylated Hsp27 is mutually exclusive with ATRX loss and the IDH1R132Hmutation and may predict better prognosis among glioblastomas without the IDH1 mutation and ATRX loss

“…Despite the use of aggressive treatment with surgery, radiation and chemotherapy, the 5-year overall survival rates for WHO grade III and IV gliomas are approximately only 25% and 5%, respectively. 1 Thus, there is an urgent need to improve the clinical management of this disease.…”

Preliminary study of central nervous system tumors’ prevalence and incidence in Isfahan Province Iran

“…The incidence of CNS tumors is an important subject that could be affected of environmental and many other disparities which are inadequately understood [13]. Concerning to ethnic and racial consideration, brain tumors are less common in Asian Americans when compared with Whites in the USA and UK [1].…”

“…Dissimilarities in the brain and central nervous system (CNS) tumor incidence have been described among countries globally [1]. According to previously published report, the incidence of brain and CNS tumors of the Western world is higher than that of the Eastern world and higher in developed countries compared with less-developed countries [2].…”

“…Differences in survival of brain and CNS tumors also exist. Studies conducted in the USA indicated that the differences in survival were mainly due to the dissimilarity in histologic category, age, sex, and management [1]. Primary brain tumors that can originate from brain cells, meninges, nerves, or glands could be a mixed cluster of benign and malignant tumors arising from the brain parenchyma and its nearby surroundings [3,4].…”