Intracranial Undifferentiated Sarcoma Arising from a Low-Grade Glioma: A Case Report and Literature Review

Genomic Characterization of Radiation-Induced Intracranial Undifferentiated Pleomorphic Sarcoma

Intracranial undifferentiated pleomorphic sarcoma remains a rare pathology within the sarcoma literature that may arise primarily or secondary after radiation therapy. Despite first-line treatment with maximal surgical resection, followed by nonstandardized adjuvant chemotherapy/radiation regimens, clinical prognosis remains exceedingly poor. Furthermore, there is a lack of genetic or molecular characterization to guide potential for targeted therapies. We present genomic analysis of a radiation-induced intracranial undifferentiated pleomorphic sarcoma in an 83-year-old woman with notable KIT and PDGFRA alterations. Further similar genomic studies of intracranial pleomorphic sarcoma are needed to develop better therapies for this rare but challenging disease entity.

Primary undifferentiated sarcoma of the meninges: A case report and comprehensive review of the literature

BACKGROUND AND IMPORTANCE

Sarcomas make up 1% of all cases of adult cancer, with 5-10% of those classified as undifferentiated pleomorphic sarcomas (UPS/PUS) and 0.1-4.3% primary intracranial sarcomas. Intracranial undifferentiated sarcoma is characterized by an earlier age of onset and generally poorer prognosis compared to extracranial undifferentiated sarcomas. Current therapies involve surgical excision with wide margins and radiotherapy, with minimal data available regarding the efficacy of chemotherapy.

CASE DESCRIPTION

A 79-year-old man with a history of remote superficial bladder cancer presented with a large frontal scalp lesion. A biopsy was initially attempted by a dermatologist in the outpatient setting, but a follow-up CT scan revealed a skull-eroding, enhancing soft tissue lesion. Neurosurgical treatment revealed an undifferentiated sarcoma. The patient underwent adjuvant radiation therapy of 59.4 Gy fractionated over 45 days following surgery. Follow-up brain MRIs at 1-, 6-, 9-, 12-, 15-, 21-, and 27 months after surgery have not shown any indications of local recurrence or tumor metastasis. Despite the high propensity that undifferentiated sarcomas have for recurrence and metastasis and the patient's advanced age, this patient remains uniquely disease-free.

CONCLUSION

We provide a description of an unusual case and comprehensive literature review of UPS to clarify the hallmarks of the disease, identify the difficulties in diagnosis, and provide a summary of therapies employed in the literature with their corresponding patient outcomes.

Correlation between VEGFR2 rs2071559 polymorphism and glioma risk among Chinese population

OBJECTIVE

We investigated the correlation between vascular endothelial growth factor 2 (VEGFR2) polymorphism and glioma risk among Chinese population.

METHOD

Case-control study design was adopted, and blood samples and clinical data of 250 glioma cases and 260 control subjects were collected. Epidemiological questionnaire survey was performed, and DNA extraction, concentration normalization and packaging were carried out using Qiagen Blood Kit. TaqMan method was performed for VEGFR2 rs2071559 genotyping.

RESULTS

C allele of VEGFR2 rs2071559 genotype was the susceptibility allele contributing to the risk of glioma (OR=1.813, 95% CI: 1.393-2.359, P=0.014). CC genotypes of VEGFR2 rs2071559 were associated with increased risk of glioma (OR=2.068, 95% CI: 1.164-3.674, P=0.014; Adjusted OR=1.883, 95% CI: 1.430~3.013, P=0.018).

CONCLUSION

CC genotypes of VEGFR2 rs2071559 were associated with glioma risk among Chinese population. However, the role of VEGFR2 rs2071559 polymorphism in glioma susceptibility remains to be further clarified.