Frameless stereotactic radiosurgery for the treatment of primary intracranial tumours in dogs

Abstract

Stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS) is a procedure that delivers a single large radiation dose to a well-defined target. Here, we describe a frameless SRS technique suitable for intracranial targets in canines. Medical records of dogs diagnosed with a primary intracranial tumour by imaging or histopathology that underwent SRS were retrospectively reviewed. Frameless SRS was used successfully to treat tumours in 51 dogs with a variety of head sizes and shapes. Tumours diagnosed included 38 meningiomas, 4 pituitary tumours, 4 trigeminal nerve tumours, 3 gliomas, 1 histiocytic sarcoma and 1 choroid plexus tumour. Median survival time was 399 days for all tumours and for dogs with meningiomas; cause-specific survival was 493 days for both cohorts. Acute grade III central nervous system toxicity (altered mentation) occurred in two dogs. Frameless SRS resulted in survival times comparable to conventional radiation therapy, but with fewer acute adverse effects and only a single anaesthetic episode required for therapy.

Stereotactic Volume Modulated Arc Radiotherapy Protocol for Canine Intracranial Meningioma.

“…However, presumptive diagnosis by imaging is validated by several veterinary medicine papers that have assessed 89-100% MRI sensitivity in differentiating neoplastic from non-neoplastic intracranial lesions and 70-96% specificity in identifying tumour type. 13,18,19,35,43 Similar results are reported in human literature.…”

“…[17][18][19][20][21] According to most recent studies, the Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) criteria for presumptive diagnosis of meningioma were: the occurrence of a single solid broad dural based extra-axial mass with distinct margins and the presence of intense and uniform enhancement with a dural tail sign.…”

New Treatment Modalities for Brain Tumors in Dogs and Cats

“…25,51,52 Linear accelerator stereotactic radiosurgery Standard linear accelerators outfitted with a micromultileaf collimator or stereotactic cones for field shaping represent the most common, economical, and flexible therapeutic platforms currently available to deliver SRS or SRT in both human and veterinary medicine. [51][52][53][54][55] Linear accelerator radiosurgery systems focus a collimated x-ray beam on a stereotactically identified target. The gantry rotates over the patient, producing a target-focused radiation arc.…”

Clinical, Imaging and Pathological Characteristics of Brain Implanted Polylactic Co-Glycolic Acid Polymers Conjugated with Temozolomide

“…Meningiomas, the most common primary brain tumour of dogs [4,5] have shown good response to more extensive surgical resection [6][7][8] and both conventional and stereotactic radiation therapy [9,10]. Glial tumours arise from the neuroectoderm and most notably include low-grade astrocytomas, oligodendrogliomas, and glioblastoma multiforme, representing 17%, 13% and 3% of primary canine brain tumours respectively [5,11,12].…”