Dear Colleagues,
Molecular diagnosis has indeed become an indissociable part of the neuropathological diagnosis of brain tumors. Back in 2015 many colleagues kindly participated in our survey on methods available for the neuropathological diagnosis of CNS Tumors. We published the results of the study in Brain Pathology. https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/bpa.12383
More recently we have also published an article highlighting the importance of assuring means for performing molecular diagnosis in all countries, richer and poorer, and have pointed out that the WHO classification should acknowledge that not all countries will have the means to perform all molecular exams considered as essential for the diagnosis of brain tumors. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8478775/
Prof. Christof Kramm, pediatric oncologist at the University of Göttingen, leading the national German study on pediatric high-grade gliomas, has conducted an international survey in collaboration with Joshua Baugh, PhD student from the Department of Neurooncology at the Princess Máxima Center for Pediatric Oncology in Utrecht, The Netherlands, and Dr. Gerrit Gielen from the Department of Neuropathology at the University of Bonn, Germany.
We have had very good feedback from clinicians and pathologists, however, after evaluating the survey results, still some questions about specific aspects of molecular diagnosis remain unclear. We are wondering if the recommendations for molecular diagnosis of brain tumors of the next WHO classification to be released in the next months are realistic and really feasible worldwide.
The main point concerns the molecular diagnostic infrastructure worldwide at this point and particularly what has changed in your diagnostic practice since 2015.
We are sending below the link to a mini survey to address the issue. We would be very grateful if you could participate, (also if you did not participate in the previous survey).
We would also greatly appreciate it if you could kindly forward the email to colleagues working in the diagnosis of brain tumors.
It should take no more than one or two minutes to answer these questions.
The link to the survey is below :
https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/W88SGXY
Thank you very much for your participation!
Christof, Joshua, Gerrit, Felipe
Felipe Andreiuolo MD, PhD
Department of Pathology IDOR, Rede D’Or
Department of Neuropathology, State Institute of Brain Paulo Niemeyer
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil