Table 1.
Patient Characteristics by RT Group (N = 150)
| Characteristic* | XRT Group | PBRT Group | P |
|---|---|---|---|
| Total | 60 (40.0) | 90 (60.0) | |
| Sex Female Male | 27 (45.0) 33 (55.0) | 36 (40.0) 54 (60.0) | .543 |
| Race/ethnicity White Black Hispanic/Latino Other race† | 22 (37.3) 8 (13.6) 25 (42.4) 4 (6.8) | 46 (52.3) 13 (14.8) 23 (26.1) 6 (6.8) | .204 |
| Histology Glioma Medulloblastoma/PNET Ependymoma Germ cell tumor Other‡ | 8 (13.3) 28 (46.7) 13 (21.7) 3 (5.0) 8 (13.3) | 20 (22.2) 34 (37.8) 4 (4.4) 17 (18.9) 15 (16.7) | .002 |
| Tumor location Infratentorial Supratentorial | 32 (54.2) 27 (45.8) | 36 (40.4) 53 (59.6) | .206 |
| CSI Yes No | 31 (51.7) 29 (48.3) | 51 (56.7) 39 (43.3) | .547 |
| Craniotomy Yes No | 58 (96.7) 2 (3.3) | 78 (86.7) 12 (13.3) | .046 |
| VP shunt Yes No | 30 (50.0) 30 (50.0) | 27 (30.0) 63 (70.0) | .013 |
| Performance score ≤ 80§ Yes No | 30 (57.7) 22 (42.3) | 32 (38.6) 51 (61.4) | .030 |
| Total RT dose to tumor, Gy, median (range) | 54.0 (30.6-59.4) | 54.0 (30.0-60.0) | .010‖ |
| CSI dose, Gy, median (range) | 23.4 (21.0-39.6) | 23.4 (21.0-39.6) | .911‖ |
| Tumor bed boost dose, Gy, median (range) | 55.8 (44.4-55.8) | 54.0 (30.0-55.8) | .152‖ |
| Age at diagnosis, years, mean ± SD (range) | 7.8 ± 4.0 (0.6-17.9) | 8.6 ± 4.3 (1.1-17.8) | .301 |
| Age at RT, years, mean ± SD (range) | 8.1 ± 3.9 (1.2-18.0) | 9.2 ± 4.1 (1.7-18.2) | .108 |
| Tumor diameter, cm, mean ± SD (range) | 4.6 ± 1.5 (1.5-8.1) | 4.2 ± 1.6 (1.3-9.6) | .155 |
| SES¶, mean ± SD (range) | 15.2 ± 11.3 (0.9-46.0) | 12.6 ± 11.6 (0.8-53.9) | .182 |
NOTE: Data are given as No. (%) unless otherwise indicated.
Abbreviations: CSI, craniospinal irradiation; PBRT, proton beam radiation therapy; PNET, primitive neuroectodermal tumor; RT, radiation therapy; SD, standard deviation; SES, socioeconomic status; VP, ventriculoperitoneal; XRT, photon radiation therapy.
Data were missing for race (n = 3), tumor location (n = 2), performance score (n = 15), and tumor diameter (n = 7). All patients who received CSI also received a tumor bed boost (XRT group, n = 31; PBRT group, n = 51).
The other race category includes Asian (n = 8) and American Indian (n = 2).
The other histology category includes craniopharyngioma (n = 13), choroid plexus carcinoma (n = 4), meningioma (n = 2), ganglioneuroblastoma (n = 1), neuronal glial (n = 1), epidermoid (n = 1), and undetermined (n = 1).
Performance score was obtained from the Lansky/Karnofsky rating at the first clinic visit after diagnosis.
║Nonparametric comparison was used rather than a means test because of the skewed distribution of values.
SES is reported as the percent of households in poverty within the home ZIP code of a patient.