From Postoperative to Preoperative: A Case Series of Hypofractionated and Single-Fraction Neoadjuvant Stereotactic Radiosurgery for Brain Metastases

BACKGROUND:Postoperative stereotactic radiosurgery after resection of brain metastases is currently the standard of care. However, rates of leptomeningeal disease (LMD) after postoperative stereotactic radiosurgery have been reported to be >30%. Neoadjuvant stereotactic radiosurgery (NaSRS) has been proposed as an alternative treatment approach to decrease this risk. OBJECTIVE:To report the local control (LC) and LMD rates in patients undergoing NaSRS. METHODS:Our retrospective multicenter case series included consecutive patients planned for SRS followed by resection of intracranial lesions with a confirmed primary malignancy. Concurrent SRS alone to other intracranial lesions was permitted. Exclusion criteria included previous local treatment to that particular lesion and Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group performance status >= 3. Outcomes reported included LC, distant intracranial control (DC), overall survival, LMD, and radionecrosis (RN) rates. RESULTS:Overall, 28 patients with 29 lesions were eligible for analysis. The median follow-up was 12.8 months. The mean age was 62.5 (range 43-80) years, and 55% were Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group performance status 0 to 1. The most common primary malignancies included non-small cell lung cancer (43%) and melanoma (32%). Hypofractionated SRS was used in 62.1%. The 12-month LC and LMD rates were 91.3% and 4.0%, respectively. The 12-month RN, DC, and overall survival rates were 5.0%, 51.5%, and 60.1%, respectively. CONCLUSION:Compared with postoperative SRS, our study suggests that NaSRS leads to comparable local control with a decreased risk of LMD and RN. This is the first NaSRS series with a majority of patients treated with fractionated SRS. NaSRS is a promising approach for appropriate patients where surgical resection is a component of local therapy.

Automated summary

Compared with postoperative stereotactic radiosurgery, neoadjuvant stereotactic radiosurgery leads to comparable local control with a decreased risk of leptomeningeal disease and radionecrosis.