The Role of Particle Therapy for the Treatment of Skull Base Tumors and Tumors of the Central Nervous System (CNS)

Top Magn Reson Imaging. 2019 Apr;28(2):49-61. doi: 10.1097/RMR.0000000000000197.

Abstract

Radiation therapy (RT) is a mainstay in the interdisciplinary treatment of brain tumors of the skull base and brain. Technical innovations during the past 2 decades have allowed for increasingly precise treatment with better sparing of adjacent healthy tissues to prevent treatment-related side effects that influence patients' quality of life. Particle therapy with protons and charged ions offer favorable kinetics with sharp dose deposition in a well-defined depth (Bragg-Peak) and a steep radiation fall-off beyond that maximum. This review highlights the role of particle therapy in the management of primary brain tumors and tumors of the skull base.

Publication types

  • Review

MeSH terms

  • Central Nervous System Neoplasms / radiotherapy*
  • Humans
  • Ions
  • Protons
  • Skull Base Neoplasms / radiotherapy*

Substances

  • Ions
  • Protons