Ependymoma

What is childhood ependymoma?
A childhood ependymoma is a malignant pediatric brain tumor that develops in the cells that line the ventricles of the brain (the ependyma) and the spinal cord canal.

Childhood ependymomas usually do not spread into healthy brain tissue. They sometimes spread along the spinal cord pathways but do not spread outside the brain or spinal cord. Ependymomas sometimes block the flow of spinal fluid. This can cause pressure inside the skull, which can cause permanent damage. Your child's pediatric neurosurgeon may place a shunt (catheter) in the brain to drain spinal fluid that has built up.
  
What are the symptoms of childhood ependymoma?
Symptoms can include:

• Headaches
• Vomiting
• Loss of balance
• Seizures

How is it childhood ependymoma diagnosed?
The multi-disciplinary pediatric brain tumor team at Le Bonheur Children's Medical Center will start the assessment with a discussion of your child's health history and a thorough physical examination. A detailed neurological evaluation will include tests of reflexes, muscles, coordination and alertness. Diagnostic tests may include CT or MRI scans.

Your child's pediatric neurosurgeon may recommend a biopsy to verify the presence of a tumor, find out what type of tumor it is and determine whether it is cancerous. During a biopsy, a small piece of tumor is removed and examined under a microscope. A biopsy is sometimes performed during surgery. Other times a small hole is made in the skull and a needle is used to remove a sample of the tumor.

What is the treatment for childhood ependymoma?
For the best chance of a cure, treatment begins with a pediatric brain tumor resection, followed by radiation therapy. The goal of pediatric brain tumor resection is to remove as much of the tumor as possible. Some ependymomas can be removed and cured by surgery.

Radiation therapy is an extremely important part of treatment. Radiation therapy uses X-ray energy or other types of radiation to kill cancer cells or keep them from growing. At Le Bonheur Children's Medical Center, children benefit from intensity modulated radiation therapy (IMRT). IMRT delivers high-doses of radiation to tumor cells without damaging surrounding healthy tissue.

Following surgery, infants receive chemotherapy instead of radiation until they reach one year of age. Chemotherapy is a medication that kills cancer cells or keeps them from dividing.

Through our partnership with St. Jude Chiidren's Research Hospital, children with brain tumors have access to promising new treatments not yet available at other hospitals.

Will the ependymoma come back?
Childhood ependymoma sometimes recurs. An ependymoma may come back up to 15 years after the original diagnosis. One of the goals of pediatric brain tumor resection is to reduce the recurrence of childhood ependymoma.

Why Le Bonheur Children's?
Le Bonheur Children's Medical Center, in conjunction with St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, is home to the nation's largest Pediatric Surgical Brain Tumor Program. Together, we are nationally known for our aggressive surgical approaches and groundbreaking treatments of brain tumors in children and adolescents.
 
Children with brain tumors receive care from a multidisciplinary group of physicians, scientists, nurses and support staff representing the many types of treatments and support crucial to the comprehensive care of children with brain tumors.

This team includes pediatric neurosurgeons at Le Bonheur Children's Medical Center and neuro-oncologists and pediatric radiation oncologists at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. Through this multi-hospital collaboration, each child's care is supported by physicians representing radiology, neuropsychology, neuropathology and neuroendocrinology, plus specially trained nurses, rehabilitation specialists, pharmacists, nutritionists and audiologists.

The Pediatric Brain Tumor Program is a key component of Le Bonheur's Neuroscience Institute, a center of excellence dedicated to the evaluation and treatment of neurological disorders. Children from across the country visit Le Bonheur each year to be treated at the Institute.

For more information please contact: Neuroscience Institute , 866.705.8279