Clin Pediatr Hematol Oncol.
2012 Oct;19(2):64-71.
Molecular Pathologic Classification of Medulloblastoma
- Affiliations
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- 1Department of Pathology, College of Medicine, The Catholic University of Korea, Seoul, Korea. lys9908@catholic.ac.kr
Abstract
- Medulloblastoma is the most frequent malignant brain tumor in children. Current therapeutic stratification for medulloblastoma is based on age, metastases, extent of resection, and histological variants. Recent molecular pathologic studies have suggested that medulloblastoma is not a single disease but consists of multiple distinct molecular subgroups. The consensus conference concludes four main subgroups, termed as WNT, SHH, Group 3 and Group 4. The subgroups differ in demographics, clinical presentation, transcriptional profile, genetic abnormality, and clinical outcome. The identification of molecular subgroup will lead to the optimal treatment and more targeted therapy for these patients. The molecular classification of medulloblastoma will continue to diversify as larger cohorts and be applicable to the prospective clinical trials. This review outlines the differences between the medulloblastoma subgroups.
