Radiation after surgery lowered the chance a grade 2 meningioma came back
Original title: Radiotherapy versus observation following surgical resection of WHO grade 2 atypical meningioma (ROAM/EORTC-1308): an international, multicentre, open-label, phase 3, randomised controlled trial.
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.
Radiation is already used today, and this finished trial helps doctors decide when to offer it.
The short version
In a large trial, radiation after full surgery cut how often this brain tumor returned.
What was studied. The trial included 157 adults with a newly found atypical meningioma, a CNS WHO grade: A number from 1 to 4 for how a tumor is likely to behave. Since 2021 it is written in plain numbers, not Roman ones. Gene results can set it too. See the glossary 2 brain tumor. All had surgery that the surgeon judged to be complete. Then 78 were given radiation and 79 were only watched.
What they found. The tumor came back in 11 (14%) of 78 people who got radiation. It came back in 24 (30%) of 79 people who were only watched. Serious side effects from radiation happened in five (8%) of 66 people treated, and no one died from the treatment.
What this means, and what it doesn't
What it could mean: If you have had full surgery for this kind of meningioma, radiation afterward may lower the chance it returns. It does have possible side effects, some of which can show up later. Your doctor can talk with you about whether the trade off is right for you.
What it doesn't mean: This does not mean radiation stops the tumor from ever coming back. Some people in the radiation group still had it return. The trial does not show that people lived longer, only that fewer tumors came back. This is not a cure, and it is not a new treatment. Radiation is already used today. The trial helps doctors decide when to offer it. The choice still depends on your own case.
Source: PubMed, September 25, 2026 · Read the original
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