What is the length of follow-up that is needed for a child following surgery for a craniopharyngioma?
Our experience is that these children will need life-time follow-up. Although many hospitals and surgical series state their cure rate in terms of 5 or 10 year follow up, recurrences of this tumor can occur remote from surgery. In a personal series, there has been a recurrence rate of 16% even after total removal as judged by post-operative scans and the surgeon’s judgement at the initial operation. For this reason, we will follow our patients yearly until ten years after surgery, and then on an every two year basis indefinitely. The follow-up issues include not only the possibility of tumor regrowth, but also continued monitoring and treatment of side-effects related to radiotherapy and other adjuvant treatments. Most of our children with craniopharyngiomas are followed in the Pediatric Brain Tumor Clinic because in this clinic a continuing, ongoing relationship can be maintained with all of the specialists needed for long term followup including ophthalmologists, endocrinologists, ne
