Low-grade gliomas (LGG) are slow-growing primary brain tumors that typically affect young adults. Advanced age is widely recognized as a poor prognostic factor in LGG. The impact of age on postoperative outcome in this patient group has not been systemically studied.
We performed a nationwide register-based study with data from the Swedish Brain Tumor Registry (SBTR) for all adults diagnosed with a supratentorial LGG (WHO grade II astrocytoma, oligoastrocytoma, or oligodendroglioma) during 2005-2015. Patient- and tumor-related characteristics, postoperative complications, and survival were compared between three different age groups (18-39 years, 40-59 years, and =60 years).
We identified 548 patients; 204 patients (37.2%) aged 18-39 years, 227 patients (41.4%) aged 40-59 years, and 117 patients (21.4%) =60 years of age. Unfavorable preoperative prognostic factors (eg, functional status and neurological deficit) were more common with increased age (P