Adult occurrence of medulloblastoma

Abstract

We analyze a series of 44 medulloblastomas in patients aged 20 and older, listed in the Connecticut Tumor Registry. Average age was 34.1 years. Incidence was 0.058 per 100,000 per year. Headache and ataxia were the most frequent presenting complaints. Findings at diagnosis most often were papilloedema, cranial nerve palsies, and cerebellar dysfunction. Treatments included operation (15%), radiation (7%), and operation plus radiation (60%). Probability of survival at one year was 0.62; at five years, 0.26. Survival with operation and radiation was superior to survival with other courses of treatment. Extracranial metastases to the spinal cord, the bones, and the pleura occurred in 27% of cases. For the first two years from diagnosis, survival in this series was significantly better than survival in the contemporary series of children with medulloblastoma. At five years and ten years, survival in adults and children was comparable.