Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

Descriptive epidemiology of germ cell tumors of the central nervous system diagnosed in the United States from 2006 to 2015

  • Laboratory Investigation
  • Published:
Journal of Neuro-Oncology Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Purpose

Germ cell tumors (GCT) in the central nervous system (CNS) are rare tumors that occur with highest frequency in males, Asian populations, and children less than age 20 years. Due to the rarity of these tumors, their patterns of incidence are not well-described. The aim of this study is to provide the most up-to-date data on incidence and survival patterns for CNS GCT by sex, race, and age at diagnosis.

Methods

The Central Brain Tumor Registry of the United States (CBTRUS) is the largest aggregation of population-based incidence data on primary brain and other CNS tumors in the United States, containing incidence data from 51 central cancer registries and representing 100% of the US population. The current study used the CBTRUS analytic file to examine incidence (IR) of CNS GCT from 2006 to 2015, as well as registry data from the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) program to examine survival.

Results

Males had greater IR than females in all CNS GCT histologies examined. Asian and Pacific Islanders had a significantly greater IR of CNS GCT than the other race categories. We confirmed that CNS GCT IR was greatest for those age 10–14 years and male. Overall survival rates were high for malignant CNS GCT, germinoma, mixed GCT, and malignant teratoma.

Conclusions

There is significant variation in CNS GCT incidence by sex, race, and age at diagnosis. Ascertaining accurate incidence and survival rates of CNS GCT provides vital information usable in real time for clinicians, public health planners, patients, and their families.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. Echevarría ME, Fangusaro J, Goldman S (2008) Pediatric central nervous system germ cell tumors: a review. Oncologist 13(6):690–699

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  2. Wong K, Opimo AB, Olch AJ, All S, Waxer JF, Clark D et al (2016) Re-irradiation of recurrent pineal germ cell tumors with radiosurgery: report of two cases and review of literature. Cureus 8(4):e585

    PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  3. Modak S, Gardner S, Dunkel IJ, Balmaceda C, Rosenblum MK, Miller DC et al (2004) Thiotepa-based high-dose chemotherapy with autologous stem-cell rescue in patients with recurrent or progressive CNS germ cell tumors. J Clin Oncol 22(10):1934–1943

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  4. Kim A, Ji L, Balmaceda C, Diez B, Kellie SJ, Dunkel IJ et al (2008) The prognostic value of tumor markers in newly diagnosed patients with primary central nervous system germ cell tumors. Pediatr Blood Cancer 51(6):768–773

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  5. McCarthy BJ, Shibui S, Kayama T, Miyaoka E, Narita Y, Murakami M et al (2012) Primary CNS germ cell tumors in Japan and the United States: an analysis of 4 tumor registries. Neuro Oncol 14(9):1194–1200

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  6. Khatua S, Dhall G, O’Neil S, Jubran R, Villablanca JG, Marachelian A et al (2010) Treatment of primary CNS germinomatous germ cell tumors with chemotherapy prior to reduced dose whole ventricular and local boost irradiation. Pediatr Blood Cancer 55(1):42–46

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  7. Sands SA, Kellie SJ, Davidow AL, Diez B, Villablanca J, Weiner HL et al (2001) Long-term quality of life and neuropsychologic functioning for patients with CNS germ-cell tumors: from the first international CNS germ-cell tumor study. Neuro Oncol 3(3):174–183

    Article  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  8. Jubran RF, Finlay J (2005) Central nervous system germ cell tumors: controversies in diagnosis and treatment. Oncology (Williston Park) 19(6):705–711 (discussion 711–712, 715–717, 721)

    Google Scholar 

  9. Souweidane MM, Krieger MD, Weiner HL, Finlay JL (2010) Surgical management of primary central nervous system germ cell tumors: proceedings from the second international symposium on central nervous system germ cell tumors. J Neurosurg Pediatr 6(2):125–130

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  10. Kellie SJ, Boyce H, Dunkel IJ, Diez B, Rosenblum M, Brualdi L, Finlay JL (2004) Primary chemotherapy for intracranial nongerminomatous germ cell tumors: results of the second international CNS germ cell study group protocol. J Clin Oncol 22(5):846–853

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  11. Villano JL, Virk IY, Ramirez V, Propp JM, Engelhard HH, McCarthy BJ (2010) Descriptive epidemiology of central nervous system germ cell tumors: nonpineal analysis. Neuro Oncol 12(3):257–264

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  12. Packer RJ, Cohen BH, Cooney K (2000) Intracranial germ cell tumors. Oncologist 5(4):312–320

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  13. da Silva NS, Cappellano AM, Diez B, Cavalheiro S, Gardner S, Wisoff J et al (2010) Primary chemotherapy for intracranial germ cell tumors: results of the third international CNS germ cell tumor study. Pediatr Blood Cancer 54(3):377–383

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  14. Goldman S, Bouffet E, Fisher PG, Allen JC, Robertson PL, Chuba PJ et al (2015) Phase II trial assessing the ability of neoadjuvant chemotherapy with or without second-look surgery to eliminate measurable disease for nongerminomatous germ cell tumors: a children’s oncology group study. J Clin Oncol 33(22):2464–2471

    Article  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  15. Ostrom QT, Gittleman H, Truitt G, Boscia A, Kruchko C, Barnholtz-Sloan JS (2018) CBTRUS statistical report: primary brain and other central nervous system tumors diagnosed in the United States in 2011–2015. Neuro Oncol 20(suppl_4):v1–v86

    Article  Google Scholar 

  16. Surveillance Epidemiology and End Results (SEER) Program (2018) SEER*Stat software version 8.3.5. National Cancer Institute, DCCPS, Surveillance Research Program. www.seer.cancer.gov/seerstat. Accessed 18 Jan 2019

  17. United States Census Bureau; American Community Survey, 2006–2010 American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table DP05; generated using American FactFinder. http://factfinder2.census.gov. Accessed 18 Jan 2019

  18. United States Census Bureau; American Community Survey, 2011–2015 American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table DP05; generated using American FactFinder. http://factfinder2.census.gov. Accessed 18 Jan 2019

  19. Nelson M(2013) dsrTest: tests and Confidence intervals on directly standardized rates for several methods. R package version 0.2.1

  20. Goodwin TL, Sainani K, Fisher PG (2009) Incidence patterns of central nervous system germ cell tumors. J Pediatr Oncol/Hematol 31(8):541–544

    Article  Google Scholar 

  21. Kang J, Ha J, Hong EK, Ju H, Park BK, Shin S et al (2018) A nationwide, population-based epidemiologic study of childhood brain tumors in Korea, 2005–2014: a comparison with United States data. Cancer Epidemiol Biomark Prev 28:409–416

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Funding

Funding for CBTRUS was provided by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) under Contract No. 2016-M-9030, the American Brain Tumor Association, The Sontag Foundation, Novocure, Abbvie, the Musella Foundation, National Brain Tumor Society, the National Cancer Institute (NCI) under Contract No. HHSN261201800176P, the Zelda Dorin Tetenbaum Memorial Fund, as well as private and in kind donations. QTO is supported by a Research Training Grant from the Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas (CPRIT; RP160097T). Contents are solely the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official views of the CDC or of the NCI.

Author information

Author notes

  1. Haley Gittleman and Gino Cioffi have contributed equally to this manuscript.

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Central Brain Tumor Registry of the United States, Hinsdale, IL, USA

    Haley Gittleman, Gino Cioffi, Quinn T. Ostrom, Carol Kruchko & Jill S. Barnholtz-Sloan

  2. Department of Population and Quantitative Health Sciences, Case Comprehensive Cancer Center, Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, 11100 Euclid Ave, Wearn 152, Cleveland, OH, 44106-5065, USA

    Haley Gittleman, Gino Cioffi & Jill S. Barnholtz-Sloan

  3. Sargent College, Boston University, Boston, MA, USA

    Toni Vecchione-Koval

  4. Department of Medicine, Section of Epidemiology and Population Sciences, Dan L. Duncan Comprehensive Cancer Center, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA

    Quinn T. Ostrom

  5. The Neuro-Oncology Program, Division of Hematology, Oncology and BMT, Nationwide Children’s Hospital, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH, USA

    Diana S. Osorio & Jonathan L. Finlay

  6. Department of Radiation Oncology, Ohio State University, Columbus, OH, USA

    Diana S. Osorio & Jonathan L. Finlay

Authors
  1. Haley Gittleman
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Gino Cioffi
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Toni Vecchione-Koval
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Quinn T. Ostrom
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. Carol Kruchko
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  6. Diana S. Osorio
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  7. Jonathan L. Finlay
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  8. Jill S. Barnholtz-Sloan
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Jill S. Barnholtz-Sloan.

Ethics declarations

Conflict of interest

All authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Ethical approval

This article does not contain any studies with human participants or animals performed by any of the authors. This study was approved as an exempt study by the University Hospitals Cleveland Medical Center Institutional Review Board.

Informed consent

This was a retrospective study using de-identified national cancer registries. Thus, formal consent was not required.

Additional information

Publisher's Note

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Electronic supplementary material

Below is the link to the electronic supplementary material.

Primary site distribution proportions for CNS germinoma (CBTRUS, 2006–2015)

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Gittleman, H., Cioffi, G., Vecchione-Koval, T. et al. Descriptive epidemiology of germ cell tumors of the central nervous system diagnosed in the United States from 2006 to 2015. J Neurooncol 143, 251–260 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11060-019-03173-4

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11060-019-03173-4

Keywords

Search

Navigation