A trial looking at temozolomide for children and young people with diffuse pontine gliomas (CNS 2007 04)

This trial looked at temozolomide during and after radiotherapy for children and young people with brain tumours called diffuse pontine gliomas. This trial was supported by Cancer Research UK.

This trial was for children and young people up to and including the age of 21. We use the term ‘you’, but of course if you are a parent, we are referring to your child.

A glioma is a type of brain tumour. A diffuse pontine glioma starts in the brain stem. The brain stem runs down the centre of the brain and connects with the spinal cord. People who have this type of glioma usually have radiotherapy.

Doctors wanted to find out if adding chemotherapy to the usual treatment would help to shrink the tumour. In this trial they looked at the drug temozolomide which is used to treat some other types of brain tumours. Those taking part had temozolomide at the same time as radiotherapy and for up to a year afterwards.

The aims of the trial were

• To find out if having temozolomide during and after radiotherapy helped to shrink diffuse pontine gliomas

• To learn more about the side effects when children or young people had these 2 treatments together