BACKGROUND The impact of impaired vision on cognitive and psychosocial outcomes among long-term survivors of childhood low-grade gliomas has not been investigated previously but could inform therapeutic decision making. METHODS Data from the Childhood Cancer Survivor Study were used to investigate psychological outcomes (measures of cognitive/emotional function) and socioeconomic outcomes (ed...

We investigated thyroid function in 119 survivors of treatment for brain tumours not involving the hypothalamo-pituitary region. Cranial irradiation did not effect thyroid function but 11 of 47 children (23%) who had spinal irradiation had raised concentrations of thyroid stimulating hormone. Chemotherapy further increased the incidence of thyroid dysfunction: two of four patients who had crani...

Curative cancer treatment regimens often require cranial irradiation, resulting in lifelong neurocognitive deficiency in cancer survivors. This deficiency is in part related to radiation-induced apoptosis and decreased neurogenesis in the subgranular zone of the hippocampus. We show that lithium treatment protects irradiated hippocampal neurons from apoptosis and improves cognitive performance ...

The growth of 182 patients who were long term survivors of childhood acute lymphoblastic leukaemia was retrospectively analysed. All remained in first remission and were treated with either 1800 or 2400 cGy of cranial irradiation. None had been treated with either testicular or spinal irradiation. Ninety three (51 boys, 42 girls) were treated with 2400 cGy and 89 (42 boys, 47 girls) were treate...

Long-term cognitive impairments are a feared consequence of therapeutic cranial irradiation in children as well as adults. Studies in animal models suggest that these deficits may be associated with a decrease in hippocampal granule cell proliferation and survival. In the present study the authors examined whether whole brain irradiation would affect trace fear conditioning, a hippocampal-depen...

We have studied the long-term endocrine effects of treatment on 144 children treated for brain tumours. All received cranial irradiation, 86 also received spinal irradiation and 34 chemotherapy. Almost all patients (140 of 144) had evidence of growth hormone insufficiency. Treatment with growth hormone was effective in maintaining normal growth but could not restore a deficit incurred by delay ...