Surgical Treatment of the Intracranial Gliomas

Chu, Jeong Wha

Abstract

In the treatment of the intracranial gliomas surgical intervention is recommended as the standard procedure which should be performed in all cases when the tumor is accessible. While surgery will not bring about a cure and clearly, radiation therapy and chemotherapy have made a significant impact of long-term survival in the treatment of the malignant gliomas, nevertheless surgery still remains the single most effective method for achieving a rapid reduction of tumor burden reducing increased intracranial pressure and provides a tissue diagnosis. Following surgery, the other antitumor programs have the best chance of achieving a significant increment of tumor cell kill, therefore, surgery has a distinct role to play in the multidisciplinable approach to the treatment of these highly aggressive malignant tumors. It is very unlikely that future advances will obviate the necessity for conventional surgery in the treatment of benign gliomas. The surgical management of gliomas with major emphasis on malignant ones is presented including the pathophysiology, radiological diagnosis, aim of surgery, surgical procedure and some different possibility of surgical treatment. Prospective future development of surgical treatment of brain tumor is also considered.