[Radiotherapy of cerebral gliomas]

Giving a dose "curative" to tumour is the guideline of radiotherapy of central nervous system glial tumours, but with an acceptable risk of radiation damage. All radiation techniques do not may leave out of account the biological basis of ionizing radiations on nervous tissue and on neoplasms arising from glial tissue. Only a firm evaluation of benefit-risk balance may allow a further improvement of therapeutic results. The external postoperative radiotherapy of malignant gliomas, alone or associated with chemotherapy, has proved as the most effectual treatment. The role of radiotherapy is less definite in treatment of well differentiated gliomas.