Survival and Prognosis of Patients with Pilocytic Astrocytoma: A Single-Center Study

BACKGROUND: Pilocytic astrocytoma (PA) is a brain tumor that is relatively more common in children and young adults. METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed the medical records of patients with PA treated at a single center between 1988 and 2018. RESULTS: We included 31 subjects with PA. The median age at diagnosis was 13.4 years, and the median follow-up duration was 9.9 years. The total PA group had a 10-year disease-specific survival (DSS) rate of 92.6% [95% confidence interval (CI), 82.6–100] and 10-year progression-free survival (PFS) rate of 52.8% (95% CI, 32.0–73.6). In patients aged <20 years, tumors were more likely to be located in sites in which gross total tumor resection (GTR) was impossible. No statistically significant difference in 10-year DSS was found between the GTR (100%) and non-GTR (89.7%; 95% CI, 76.2–100; p=0.374) groups. However, a statistically significant difference in 10-year PFS was found between the GTR (100%) and non-GTR groups (30.7%; 95% CI, 8.6–52.8; p=0.012). In the non-GTR group, no statistically significant difference in 10-year DSS was found between the patients who received immediate additional chemotherapy and/or radiotherapy (Add-Tx group, 92.9%; 95% CI, 79.4–100) and the non-Add-Tx group (83.3%; 95% CI, 53.5–100; p=0.577). No statistically significant difference in 10-year PFS was found between the Add-Tx group (28.9%; 95% CI, 1.7–56.1) and non-Add-Tx group (33.3%; 95% CI, 0–70.9; p=0.706). CONCLUSION: The PFS of the patients with PA in our study depended only on the degree of surgical excision associated with tumor location. This study is limited by its small number of patients and retrospective nature. A multicenter and prospective study is necessary to confirm these findings.