Surgeons removed a brain tumor through a small cut in the eyebrow
Original title: Case Report: Supraorbital keyhole resection of IDH-mutant grade 3 astrocytoma of the medial orbitofrontal region.
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 is a report on a single patient, not a trial that shows the approach works better.
The short version
Doctors took out a woman's brain tumor through a small opening above her eyebrow, and she kept her normal brain function.
What was studied. This is a report about one patient. She was a 47-year-old woman with a grade 3 astrocytoma, a fast-growing brain tumor, in the lower front part of her brain. Her surgeons used a small keyhole opening through the eyebrow instead of a larger opening in the skull.
What they found. The surgeons removed all of the tumor they could see. An MRI scan done within 72 hours showed no visible tumor left behind. Tests on the tumor confirmed it was grade 3 and carried a gene change called IDH. She then had the usual follow-up treatment, radiation with the drug temozolomide. At follow-up, her nerve and brain function were still normal and she was very happy with how the scar looked.
What this means, and what it doesn't
What it could mean: For some patients, a tumor deep in the front of the brain may be reachable through a small eyebrow opening. That can mean a smaller wound and a better cosmetic result. Whether this fits you depends on exactly where your tumor sits. That is a question for your own surgeon.
What it doesn't mean: This is one patient, not a study. One person doing well does not prove the method is better or safer than the usual surgery. It does not tell us how long she stayed well. The doctors themselves say this only applies to carefully chosen patients. It is not a cure, and it is not a new treatment for the tumor itself. It is a different way to reach the tumor.
Source: PubMed, July 10, 2026 · Read the original
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