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Published on: February 24, 2021
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Functional connectivity within glioblastoma impacts overall survival
Andy G S Daniel1, Ki Yun Park2, Jarod L Roland3,4
1Department of Biomedical Engineering, McKelvey School of Engineering, Washington University, St. Louis, Missouri.
Neuro-Oncology
|August 14, 2020
Summary
Functional connectivity (FC) within glioblastoma (GBM) tumors is detectable and predicts patient survival. Higher FC strength indicates better outcomes, offering potential for improved treatment planning in GBM patients.
Area of Science:
- Neuroimaging
- Oncology
- Radiology
Background:
- Glioblastoma (GBM) exhibits variable MRI appearance due to cellular heterogeneity.
- Neurovascular units and functional connectivity (FC) may persist within GBMs, though altered.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the presence of within-tumor FC in GBM using resting-state functional MRI.
- To determine if within-tumor FC strength predicts overall survival in GBM patients.
Main Methods:
- Analyzed 57 de novo GBM patients using resting-state functional MRI.
- Defined FC regions of interest (ROIs) within tumors.
- Correlated FC strength with survival outcomes, adjusting for covariates.
Main Results:
- Functionally connected voxels were routinely found within GBM tumors, independent of tumor size.
- Higher intranetwork FC strength within GBM was significantly associated with better overall survival in 31 patients with known survival times.
Conclusions:
- Functionally intact regions may persist within GBMs.
- The degree of maintained FC has prognostic value for GBM.
- FC assessment could inform GBM treatment planning.
