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Shakir M, Irshad HA, Khowaja AH, Tahir I, Shariq SF, Rae AI, Hamzah R, Gupta S, Park KB, Enam SA. Adjuvant therapy for brain tumors in LMICs: A systematic review of barriers and possible solutions. Clin Neurol Neurosurg 2024; 244:108460. [PMID: 39059287 DOI: 10.1016/j.clineuro.2024.108460] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/11/2024] [Revised: 07/12/2024] [Accepted: 07/15/2024] [Indexed: 07/28/2024]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Adjuvant therapy is an important tool in the arsenal of brain tumor management and can improve patients' outcomes significantly but low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) often face challenges in provision. Therefore, our study aims to highlight barriers and strategies to adjuvant therapy of brain tumors in low-resource settings. METHOD A comprehensive search of literature was conducted using PubMed, CINAHL, Google Scholar, and Scopus, from inception to October 20, 2022. The review included studies on adjuvant therapy for brain tumors in LMICs and identified themes using the National Surgical, Obstetric, and Anesthesia Plan (NSOAP) domains. RESULTS 32 studies were included in the review. The most reported barriers to adjuvant care were limited access to healthcare (14 %), limited access to chemotherapy and radiation equipment (25 %), and traditional or alternative medications (11 %). Strategies for improvement include improving the availability of specialized radiation oncology training (8 %) and improving access to neuro-diagnostics and neurotherapeutics (12 %). In addition, efforts to subsidize treatment (4 %) and provide financial coverage through the Ministry of Health (4 %) can help to address the high cost of care and improve access to funding for chemotherapy. Finally, establishing documentation systems and registries (16 %), implementing standardized national treatment guidelines (8 %) can help to improve overall care for brain tumor patients in LMICs. CONCLUSION A multimodal approach of strategies targeting workforce, infrastructure, service delivery, financing, and information management is needed to improve adjuvant care for brain tumors. International collaboration and partnerships can also play a key role in addressing barriers and improving care in LMICs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Muhammad Shakir
- Section of Neurosurgery, Department of Surgery, Aga Khan University Hospital, Karachi, Pakistan.
| | | | | | - Izza Tahir
- Medical School, Aga Khan University, Karachi, Pakistan
| | | | - Ali I Rae
- Department of Global Health and Social Medicine, Program for Global Surgery and Social Change, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Radzi Hamzah
- Department of Global Health and Social Medicine, Program for Global Surgery and Social Change, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Saksham Gupta
- Department of Global Health and Social Medicine, Program for Global Surgery and Social Change, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Kee B Park
- Department of Global Health and Social Medicine, Program for Global Surgery and Social Change, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Syed Ather Enam
- Section of Neurosurgery, Department of Surgery, Aga Khan University Hospital, Karachi, Pakistan.
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Liu YL, Tsai ML, Chen CI, Yar N, Tsai CW, Lee HL, Kuo CC, Ho WL, Hsieh KLC, Tseng SH, Miser JS, Chang CY, Chang H, Huang WC, Wong TT, Wu ATH, Yen YC. Atypical Teratoid/Rhabdoid Tumor in Taiwan: A Nationwide, Population-Based Study. Cancers (Basel) 2022; 14:cancers14030668. [PMID: 35158938 PMCID: PMC8833760 DOI: 10.3390/cancers14030668] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/27/2021] [Revised: 01/21/2022] [Accepted: 01/25/2022] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Simple Summary Atypical teratoid/rhabdoid tumor (AT/RT) is a rare, highly malignant CNS neoplasm with poor prognosis. A retrospective population-based analysis of patients with the diagnosis of AT/RT, registered between 1999 and 2014 in Taiwan, showed that: (1) AT/RT had a higher prevalence in males, in children < 36 months of age, and at infratentorial sites; (2) older age (≥12 months), presence of the tumor in the supratentorial region, use of radiotherapy, chemotherapy, or both were associated with better prognosis compared to surgery or no treatment. These data represent a historical experience with AT/RT in Taiwan and may inform risk stratification and clinical trial design. Abstract Background: Atypical teratoid/rhabdoid tumor (AT/RT) is a rare, highly aggressive embryonal brain tumor most commonly presenting in young children. Methods: We performed a nationwide, population-based study of AT/RT (ICD-O-3 code: 9508/3) in Taiwan using the Taiwan Cancer Registry Database and the National Death Certificate Database. Results: A total of 47 cases (male/female = 29:18; median age at diagnosis, 23.3 months (IQR: 12.5–87.9)) were diagnosed with AT/RT between 1999 and 2014. AT/RT had higher prevalence in males (61.70%), in children < 36 months (55.32%), and at infratentorial or spinal locations (46.81%). Survival analyses demonstrated that patients ≥ 3 years of age (n = 21 (45%)) had a 5y-OS of 41% (p < 0.0001), treatment with radiotherapy only (n = 5 (11%)) led to a 5y-OS of 60%, treatment with chemotherapy with or without radiotherapy (n = 27 (62%)) was associated with a 5y-OS of 45% (p < 0.0001), and patients with a supratentorial tumor (n = 11 (23%)) had a 5y-OS of 51.95%. Predictors of better survival on univariate Cox proportional hazard modeling and confirmed with multivariate analysis included older age (≥1 year), supratentorial sites, and the administration of radiotherapy, chemotherapy, or both. Gender had no effect on survival. Conclusion: Older age, supratentorial site, and treatment with radiotherapy, chemotherapy, or both significantly improves the survival of patients with AT/RT.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yen-Lin Liu
- Department of Pediatrics, School of Medicine, College of Medicine, Taipei Medical University, Taipei 110, Taiwan; (Y.-L.L.); (M.-L.T.); (W.-L.H.); (C.-Y.C.); (H.C.)
- Department of Pediatrics, Taipei Medical University Hospital, Taipei 110, Taiwan
- Pediatric Brain Tumor Program, Taipei Cancer Center, Taipei Neurological Institute, Taipei Medical University, Taipei 110, Taiwan; (H.-L.L.); (K.L.-C.H.); (J.S.M.); (T.-T.W.)
- TMU Research Center of Cancer Translational Medicine, Taipei Medical University, Taipei 110, Taiwan
| | - Min-Lan Tsai
- Department of Pediatrics, School of Medicine, College of Medicine, Taipei Medical University, Taipei 110, Taiwan; (Y.-L.L.); (M.-L.T.); (W.-L.H.); (C.-Y.C.); (H.C.)
- Department of Pediatrics, Taipei Medical University Hospital, Taipei 110, Taiwan
- Pediatric Brain Tumor Program, Taipei Cancer Center, Taipei Neurological Institute, Taipei Medical University, Taipei 110, Taiwan; (H.-L.L.); (K.L.-C.H.); (J.S.M.); (T.-T.W.)
| | - Chang-I Chen
- Department of Health Care Administration, College of Management, Taipei Medical University, Taipei 110, Taiwan; (C.-I.C.); (N.Y.); (C.-C.K.)
| | - Noi Yar
- Department of Health Care Administration, College of Management, Taipei Medical University, Taipei 110, Taiwan; (C.-I.C.); (N.Y.); (C.-C.K.)
| | - Ching-Wen Tsai
- Health Data Analytics and Statistics Center, Office of Data Science, Taipei Medical University, Taipei 110, Taiwan;
| | - Hsin-Lun Lee
- Pediatric Brain Tumor Program, Taipei Cancer Center, Taipei Neurological Institute, Taipei Medical University, Taipei 110, Taiwan; (H.-L.L.); (K.L.-C.H.); (J.S.M.); (T.-T.W.)
- Department of Radiation Oncology, Taipei Medical University Hospital, Taipei 110, Taiwan
- Department of Radiology, School of Medicine, College of Medicine, Taipei Medical University, Taipei 110, Taiwan
| | - Chia-Chun Kuo
- Department of Health Care Administration, College of Management, Taipei Medical University, Taipei 110, Taiwan; (C.-I.C.); (N.Y.); (C.-C.K.)
- Department of Radiation Oncology, Taipei Medical University Hospital, Taipei 110, Taiwan
- Ph.D. Program for Cancer Molecular Biology and Drug Discovery, College of Medical Science and Technology, Taipei Medical University and Academia Sinica, Taipei 110, Taiwan
- Department of Radiation Oncology, Wan Fang Hospital, Taipei Medical University, Taipei 110, Taiwan
| | - Wan-Ling Ho
- Department of Pediatrics, School of Medicine, College of Medicine, Taipei Medical University, Taipei 110, Taiwan; (Y.-L.L.); (M.-L.T.); (W.-L.H.); (C.-Y.C.); (H.C.)
- Department of Pediatrics, Taipei Medical University Hospital, Taipei 110, Taiwan
- Pediatric Brain Tumor Program, Taipei Cancer Center, Taipei Neurological Institute, Taipei Medical University, Taipei 110, Taiwan; (H.-L.L.); (K.L.-C.H.); (J.S.M.); (T.-T.W.)
- School of Medicine, College of Medicine, Fu Jen Catholic University, New Taipei City 242, Taiwan
- Department of Pediatrics, Shin Kong Wu Ho-Su Memorial Hospital, Taipei 111, Taiwan
| | - Kevin Li-Chun Hsieh
- Pediatric Brain Tumor Program, Taipei Cancer Center, Taipei Neurological Institute, Taipei Medical University, Taipei 110, Taiwan; (H.-L.L.); (K.L.-C.H.); (J.S.M.); (T.-T.W.)
- TMU Research Center of Cancer Translational Medicine, Taipei Medical University, Taipei 110, Taiwan
- Department of Radiology, School of Medicine, College of Medicine, Taipei Medical University, Taipei 110, Taiwan
- Department of Medical Imaging, Taipei Medical University Hospital, Taipei 110, Taiwan
| | - Sung-Hui Tseng
- Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Taipei Medical University Hospital, Taipei 110, Taiwan;
- Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, School of Medicine, College of Medicine, Taipei Medical University, Taipei 110, Taiwan
| | - James S. Miser
- Pediatric Brain Tumor Program, Taipei Cancer Center, Taipei Neurological Institute, Taipei Medical University, Taipei 110, Taiwan; (H.-L.L.); (K.L.-C.H.); (J.S.M.); (T.-T.W.)
- Department of Pediatrics, City of Hope Comprehensive Cancer Center, Duarte, CA 91010, USA
- Cancer Center, Taipei Medical University Hospital, Taipei 110, Taiwan
| | - Chia-Yau Chang
- Department of Pediatrics, School of Medicine, College of Medicine, Taipei Medical University, Taipei 110, Taiwan; (Y.-L.L.); (M.-L.T.); (W.-L.H.); (C.-Y.C.); (H.C.)
- Department of Pediatrics, Taipei Medical University Hospital, Taipei 110, Taiwan
- Pediatric Brain Tumor Program, Taipei Cancer Center, Taipei Neurological Institute, Taipei Medical University, Taipei 110, Taiwan; (H.-L.L.); (K.L.-C.H.); (J.S.M.); (T.-T.W.)
| | - Hsi Chang
- Department of Pediatrics, School of Medicine, College of Medicine, Taipei Medical University, Taipei 110, Taiwan; (Y.-L.L.); (M.-L.T.); (W.-L.H.); (C.-Y.C.); (H.C.)
- Department of Pediatrics, Taipei Medical University Hospital, Taipei 110, Taiwan
| | - Wen-Chang Huang
- Department of Pathology, Wan Fang Hospital, Taipei Medical University, Taipei 110, Taiwan;
| | - Tai-Tong Wong
- Pediatric Brain Tumor Program, Taipei Cancer Center, Taipei Neurological Institute, Taipei Medical University, Taipei 110, Taiwan; (H.-L.L.); (K.L.-C.H.); (J.S.M.); (T.-T.W.)
- TMU Research Center of Cancer Translational Medicine, Taipei Medical University, Taipei 110, Taiwan
- Graduate Institute of Clinical Medicine, College of Medicine, Taipei Medical University, Taipei 110, Taiwan
- Neuroscience Research Center, Taipei Medical University Hospital, Taipei 110, Taiwan
- Division of Pediatric Neurosurgery, Department of Neurosurgery, Taipei Medical University Hospital, Taipei Neuroscience Institute, Taipei Medical University, Taipei 110, Taiwan
| | - Alexander T. H. Wu
- TMU Research Center of Cancer Translational Medicine, Taipei Medical University, Taipei 110, Taiwan
- The Ph.D. Program of Translational Medicine, College of Medical Science and Technology, Taipei Medical University, Taipei 110, Taiwan
- Clinical Research Center, Taipei Medical University Hospital, Taipei Medical University, Taipei 110, Taiwan
- Graduate Institute of Medical Sciences, National Defense Medical Center, Taipei 114, Taiwan
- Correspondence: (A.T.H.W.); (Y.-C.Y.)
| | - Yu-Chun Yen
- Health Data Analytics and Statistics Center, Office of Data Science, Taipei Medical University, Taipei 110, Taiwan;
- Correspondence: (A.T.H.W.); (Y.-C.Y.)
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