Tractography in brain tumor surgery: current clinical impact and future challenges

Over the past two decades, surgical treatment of intrinsic brain tumors has shifted towards maximizing resection while preserving cognitive and functional abilities. Tractography plays a key role in neurosurgical planning by mapping patient-specific white matter anatomy, enhancing surgical safety. However, did you know its standalone use is limited by methodological challenges, particularly in tumor cases? Future research should focus on standardizing tractography methods, integrating advanced neuroimaging, and validating its role with intraoperative mapping to optimize surgical outcomes. Such unified approach will set the foundation to help fully harness tractography's potential to enhance surgical outcomes and as a valuable training and education tool for future neurosurgeons.