This PDQ cancer information summary for health professionals provides peer-reviewed, evidence-based information about the treatment of select childhood brain and spinal cord tumors. It also provides links to the other PDQ childhood brain and spinal cord tumor summaries. This summary is reviewed regularly and updated as necessary by the PDQ Pediatric Treatment Editorial Board ¹.

Information about the following is included in this summary:

• Classification of childhood brain and spinal cord tumors.
• General approach to care for childhood brain tumor patients.
• Stage information about select childhood brain and spinal cord tumors, and links to the other PDQ childhood brain and spinal cord tumor summaries.
• Treatment options about select childhood brain and spinal cord tumors, and links to the other PDQ childhood brain and spinal cord tumor summaries.

This summary is intended as a resource to inform and assist clinicians and other health professionals who care for pediatric cancer patients. It does not provide formal guidelines or recommendations for making health care decisions.

In this summary, treatments are described as “standard” or “conventional” and “under clinical evaluation.” These designations should not be used as a basis for reimbursement determinations.

This summary is also available in a patient ² version, which is written in less-technical language, and in Spanish ³.

 [Note: The PDQ childhood brain tumor treatment summaries are in the process of being substantially revised. This revision process was prompted by changes in the nomenclature and classification for pediatric central nervous system tumors. New PDQ childhood brain tumor treatment summaries will be added and some existing summaries will be replaced or their content combined with other PDQ childhood brain tumor treatment summaries in the near future.]