Étude AVARTHEC : complications vasculaires de l'irradiation crânienne pour tumeur cérébrale durant l'enfance et l'adolescence

In France, as in other developed countries, primary tumors of central nervous system (CNS) represent the second most frequent neoplasm (after leukemia) and the leading cause of cancer-related deaths in childhood. They account for approximately 25% of incident malignancies in children < 15 years of age at diagnosis. For all CNS tumors combined, the 5-year-overall survival is about 65-70%. The goal of neurosurgery is ideally to complete microsurgical removal of the tumor. In pediatric oncology, combined-treatment strategies using surgery, craniospinal radiation, and chemotherapy could be indicated depending on the stage, the grade and the histology of primitive tumor. The potential combined-treatment-associated morbidity must always be taken into consideration. Few studies have investigated the role of radiotherapy and chemotherapy in the long-term risk of cerebrosvascular disease following childhood cancer treatment. The aim of the AVARTHEC study is to describe clinical and imaging characteristics of cerebrosvascular disease in survival patients after radiation treatment of CNS tumor during childhood or adolescence. The short-term goal will be to have information of neurovascular sequelea following new radiation techniques for CNS tumor. The long-term goal will be to identify high-risk patients to develop cerebrosvascular diseases after CNS radiation and to adapt their long-term follow-up at potential primary and secondary prevention. The AVARTHEC study could help French health-care government policies to elaborate recommendations on new radiation therapy techniques considering potential risk factors of cerebrosvascular morbidity.