A small camera and tube used to remove large brain tumors
Original title: Minimally Invasive Endoscopic Approach to Large Intraventricular Tumors.
How far along is this research?
- Lab cells
- Animals
- Review
- Tested in people
This was tested in people. That is the most reliable kind of research we share.
This looks back at 8 people already treated at one clinic, so it does not prove the method works better.
The short version
Doctors used a small camera and a narrow tube to take out large tumors deep in the brain, and no problems were reported in this small group.
What was studied. Doctors looked back at the records of 8 patients treated at one clinic between 2015 and 2020. All had large tumors, bigger than 5 cm, in the fluid spaces inside the brain. All were operated on with an endoscope, a thin camera, passed through a small tube.
What they found. The group was 3 females and 5 males. Nearly all of the tumor was removed in 3 patients. Part of the tumor was removed in 5 patients. The tumor types were neurocytoma in 3 patients, glioblastoma: The fastest-growing type of glioma (grade 4). Treatment usually starts soon after diagnosis: surgery first, then radiation and chemotherapy. See the glossary in 2 patients, cancer that had spread from elsewhere in 2 patients, and a grade II meningioma in 1 patient. No complications and no deaths were reported over 31 months of follow-up.
What this means, and what it doesn't
What it could mean: A less invasive surgery may be one option for some large tumors deep in the brain. The doctors here were able to remove tumor tissue this way without reported harm. If you are facing surgery, you can ask your surgeon whether this approach fits your tumor and whether their team does it.
What it doesn't mean: This is not a cure and it is not proof. It is a look back at records from only 8 patients at a single clinic. There was no other group treated a different way to compare against. A report this small cannot show that this method is better or safer than standard surgery. Results could look different in a larger group of people. This is early evidence from one team, not a new standard of care.
Source: PubMed, January 1, 2026 · Read the original
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