Recurrence of spinal ependymoma. Risk factors and long-term survival.

Abstract

A study was conducted on 78 patients with spinal ependymoma. The authors divided the patients in two groups. The aim was to elicit the risk factors for recurrence and the fate of patients who underwent second operations. Group A is made up of 59 patients with no signs of recurrence at follow-up (median 14 years), and group B is made up of 19 patients who had undergone second operations because of relapses (follow-up median 12 years). The clinical and therapeutic characteristics and survival of the two groups were compared statistically. Analysis of the series shows that the most important points in predicting recurrence are length of clinical history (P < 0.05), gross appearance of the tumor at first operation (P < 0.05), and type of excision (P < 0.001). These factors proved to be closely interrelated. In the event of recurrence, spinal ependymoma has an adverse prognosis.