• Christian Carrie, Virginie Kieffer, Dominique Figarella-Branger, Julien Masliah-Planchon, Stéphanie Bolle, Valérie Bernier, Anne Laprie, Stéphane Supiot, Julie Leseur, Jean-Louis Habrand, Claire Alapetite, Christine Kerr, Christelle Dufour, Line Claude, Sophie Chapet, Aymeri Huchet, Pierre-Yves Bondiau, Alexandre Escande, Gilles Truc, Tan Dat Nguyen, Caroline Pasteuris, Céline Vigneron, Xavier Muracciole, Franck Bourdeaut, Romain Appay, Bernard Dubray, Carole Colin, Céline Ferlay, Sophie Dussart, Sylvie Chabaud, Laetitia Padovani, French Group of Pediatric Radiotherapy (GFRP), and French Society of Pediatric Cancers (SFCE).
• Department of Radiotherapy, Leon Berard Cancer Center, and University of Lyon, CNRS UMR 5220, INSERM U1044, INSA, Lyon, France. Electronic address: christian.carrie@lyon.unicancer.fr.
• Int. J. Radiat. Oncol. Biol. Phys. 2020 Dec 1; 108 (5): 1204-1217.

PurposeMedulloblastoma has recently been characterized as a heterogeneous disease with 4 distinct molecular subgroups: wingless (WNT), sonic hedgehog (SHH), group 3, and group 4, with a new definition of risk stratification. We report progression-free survival, overall survival, and long-term cognitive effects in children with standard-risk medulloblastoma exclusively treated with hyperfractionated radiation therapy (HFRT), reduced boost volume, and online quality control, and we explore the prognostic value of biological characteristics in this chemotherapy-naïve population.Methods And MaterialsPatients with standard-risk medulloblastoma were enrolled in 2 successive prospective multicentric studies, MSFOP 98 and MSFOP 2007, and received exclusive HFRT (36 Gy, 1 Gy/fraction twice daily) to the craniospinal axis followed by a boost at 68 Gy restricted to the tumor bed (1.5 cm margin), with online quality assurance before treatment. Patients with MYC or MYCN amplification were not excluded at the time of the study. We report progression-free survival and overall survival in the global population, and according to molecular subgroups as per World Health Organization 2016 molecular classification, and we present cognitive evaluations based on the Wechsler scale.ResultsData from 114 patients included in the MSFOP 98 trial from December 1998 to October 2001 (n = 48) and in the MSFOP 2007 from October 2008 to July 2013 (n = 66) were analyzed. With a median follow-up of 16.2 (range, 6.4-19.6) years for the MSFOP 98 cohort and 6.5 (1.6-9.6) years for the MSFOP 2007 cohort, 5-year overall survival and progression-free survival in the global population were 84% (74%-89%) and 74% (65%-81%), respectively. Molecular classification was determined for 91 patients (WNT [n = 19], SHH [n = 12], and non-WNT/non-SHH [n = 60]-including group 3 [n = 9], group 4 [n = 29], and not specified [n = 22]). Our results showed more favorable outcome for the WNT-activated subgroup and a worse prognosis for SHH-activated patients. Three patients had isolated extra-central nervous system relapse. The slope of neurocognitive decline in the global population was shallower than that observed in patients with a normofractionated regimen combined with chemotherapy.ConclusionsHFRT led to a 5-year survival rate similar to other treatments combined with chemotherapy, with a reduced treatment duration of only 6 weeks. We confirm the MSFOP 98 results and the prognostic value of molecular status in patients with medulloblastoma, even in the absence of chemotherapy. Intelligence quotient was more preserved in children with medulloblastoma who received exclusive HFRT and reduced local boost, and intelligence quotient decline was delayed compared with patients receiving standard regimen. HFRT may be appropriate for patients who do not consent to or are not eligible for prospective clinical trials; for patients from developing countries for whom aplasia or ileus may be difficult to manage in a context of high cost/effectiveness constraints; and for whom shortened duration of RT may be easier to implement.Copyright © 2020 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

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