Novel Surgical Approaches to High-Grade Gliomas

Treatment of patients with high-grade glioma (HGG) should begin with thorough evaluation by a specialized multidisciplinary team to determine whether or not the patient is appropriate for surgery, chemotherapy and radiotherapy. Particular attention should be paid to the performance status and neurological function. Surgery is the first step in therapeutic intervention. Patients undergo either biopsy, debulking surgery or maximal resection depending on the anatomical location of the tumour and the patient's clinical condition. Extent of resection has a prognostic value. In patients who are 'fit for surgery', the aim is to remove all contrast-enhancing tumour without causing neurological deficit. If microsurgical resection is not feasible, then a biopsy, either open or stereotactic, should be performed to confirm high-grade glioma diagnosis and to perform molecular genetic analyses (MGMT methylation status, loss of heterozygosity in 1p/19q, IDH1 status) as this has treatment implications. Over the past decade, much glioma research has focussed on novel surgical approaches to improve long-term outcomes. The evidence to support the benefit of maximizing extent of resection is growing. Advances in neurosurgical techniques allow safer, more aggressive surgery to maximize tumour resection whilst minimizing neurological deficit. Surgical adjuncts including advanced neuronavigation, intraoperative magnetic resonance imaging, high-frequency ultrasonography, fluorescence-guided microsurgery using intraoperative fluorescence, functional mapping of motor and language pathways, and locally delivered therapies are extending the armamentarium of the neurosurgeon to provide patients with the best outcome. Operating on elderly patients and those with recurrent disease, although controversial, is becoming more common due to emerging neurosurgical approaches. Here, we discuss the emerging surgical techniques and comment on the future of HGG surgery.