Three ways lower grade brain tumors respond to chemotherapy
Original title: Modeling tumor volume trajectory and outcome identifies 3 distinct response classes in lower-grade IDH-mutant glioma receiving first-line chemotherapy.
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 was a look back at scans from people already treated, not a test of a new treatment.
The short version
Researchers found three different patterns in how these tumors change during chemotherapy.
What was studied. Researchers looked back at records from 195 people with a lower grade brain tumor called IDH gene change: A small change in a tumor's IDH gene. Tumors with this change often grow more slowly and may respond to different treatments. Your pathology report says whether your tumor has it. See the glossary glioma: A tumor that starts in the glial cells, the support cells of the brain and spinal cord. Gliomas are graded 1 to 4 by how fast they tend to grow. See the glossary. All of them had chemotherapy as their first treatment. The team measured tumor size on 1956 MRI scans using a computer program.
What they found. The tumors fell into three groups. In 13.8% of people, the tumor started growing as soon as treatment began, and those people did worse. In 57.4%, the tumor stayed about the same size or shrank a little, and those people did better. In 28.7%, the tumor shrank at first, then grew back quickly within 2 years.
What this means, and what it doesn't
What it could mean: How a tumor changes on early scans may say something about what comes next. Over time, this kind of tracking could help a care team notice sooner when chemotherapy is not working well. It does not change the treatment choices available today.
What it doesn't mean: This is not a new treatment, and it is not a cure. The researchers looked back at old records from one hospital. They did not test a new drug or a new plan. The three groups came from a computer model, not from a test a doctor can order for you. Your own scans may not follow any of these patterns.
Source: PubMed, July 13, 2026 · Read the original
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