Long term follow-up and outcomes in adult patients with thalamic gliomas

•Adult patient with thalamic glioma could have a long-term survival after receiving appropriate treatment.•No statistically significant differences in OS and PFS between patients in the surgical group and in the IMRT group.•IMRT might be an acceptable alternative to surgery for thalamic glioma. To investigate the optimal treatment and prognosis of thalamic glioma in adult patients. We retrospectively analyzed the adult patients with thalamic glioma admitted to our hospital from May 2005 to September 2016. Patients were divided into two groups according to their treatment: surgery-based combined treatment and intensity modulated radiation therapy (IMRT)-based treatment. Univariate chi-square test and multivariate logistic regression were used to identify independent factors for the treatment modality. A log-rank test, adjusting for propensity score, was used to compare the overall survival (OS) and progression-free survival (PFS) of patients between the two groups. Fifty-eight adult patients with thalamic gliomas were included in the analysis. Of them, 31 were treated with surgery-based treatment, and 27 were treated with IMRT-based treatment. The overall survival (OS) and progression-free survival (PFS) of patients between the two groups were not significantly different (median OS 16.0 (range 1.0–163.0) months vs. 10.0 (range 1.0–118.0) months, p = 0.344 and median PFS 10.0 (range 1.0–163.0) months vs. 6.0 (range 1.0–118.0) months, p = 0.464, respectively) even after adjusting for potential confounding factors. The OS and PFS of adult patients with thalamic glioma were not significantly different between patients in the surgical group and in the IMRT group. IMRT might be an acceptable alternative to surgery for adult patients with unresectable thalamic glioma.