Tectal gliomas with "low-grade appearance": Natural history on MR imaging.

Cohort studyNeuro-oncology practice· Aug 2026

Tectal gliomas with "low-grade appearance": Natural history on MR imaging.

Danial Nasiri, Lara Imwinkelried, Philipp Becker … Levin Häni

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Neurosurgical OncologyCohort studyPrognosisQ1IF 2.3

Low-grade tectal gliomas show minimal tumor growth on long-term MRI follow-up.

Tectal gliomas with "low-grade appearance": Natural history on MR imaging.

Danial Nasiri … Levin Häni

Neuro-oncology practice · Aug 2026 · Q1 in General Medicine

Background

Tectal gliomas (tectal gliomas) are often indolent, but heterogeneous study populations in prior cohorts yielded ambiguous results concerning their natural history.

Methods

We retrospectively analyzed tectal gliomas treated at our institution between 2010 and 2023.

0.87%/year

Results

0.87%/year

tumor size stayed nearly unchanged year over year

More results

Twenty patients met the inclusion criteria (median age 22.5 years, interquartile range [IQR] 18.7-39.6).

Headache was the most common indication for imaging (60%).

Twelve patients (60%) required cerebrospinal fluid (cerebrospinal fluid) diversion for hydrocephalus at the time of diagnosis.

More results

Only 1 patient exhibited tumor growth with a marginal increase in size over 12.8 years of follow-up.

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Conclusion · 1 of 2

Tectal gliomas with a low-grade imaging phenotype shows a predominantly stable long-term course. Management is typically limited to cerebrospinal fluid diversion for hydrocephalus.

Conclusion · 2 of 2

Routine tumor-directed therapy is not supported in the absence of concerning clinical or imaging features. Magnetic resonance imaging surveillance remains essential to detect rare progression.

Tectal gliomas with "low-grade appearance": Natural history on MR imaging.

Tectal gliomas with "low-grade appearance": Natural history on MR imaging.

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