Cancers, Vol. 16, Pages 650: Anaplastic Lymphoma Kinase (ALK) in Posterior Cranial Fossa Tumors: A Scoping Review of Diagnostic, Prognostic, and Therapeutic Perspectives

Cancers, Vol. 16, Pages 650: Anaplastic Lymphoma Kinase (ALK) in Posterior Cranial Fossa Tumors: A Scoping Review of Diagnostic, Prognostic, and Therapeutic Perspectives Cancers doi: 10.3390/cancers16030650 Authors: Danai-Priskila V. Mousa Georgios Mavrovounis Dionysios Argyropoulos George Stranjalis Theodosis Kalamatianos Anaplastic Lymphoma Kinase (ALK) has been implicated in several human cancers. This review aims at mapping the available literature on the involvement of ALK in non-glial tumors localized in the posterior cranial fossa and at identifying diagnostic, prognostic, and therapeutic considerations. Following the PRISMA-ScR guidelines, studies were included if they investigated ALK’s role in primary CNS, non-glial tumors located in the posterior cranial fossa. A total of 210 manuscripts were selected for full-text review and 16 finally met the inclusion criteria. The review included 55 cases of primary, intracranial neoplasms with ALK genetic alterations and/or protein expression, located in the posterior fossa, comprising of medulloblastoma, anaplastic large-cell lymphoma, histiocytosis, inflammatory myofibroblastic tumors, and intracranial myxoid mesenchymal tumors. ALK pathology was investigated via immunohistochemistry or genetic analysis. Several studies provided evidence for potential diagnostic and prognostic value for ALK assessment as well as therapeutic efficacy in its targeting. The available findings on ALK in posterior fo...
Source: Cancers - Category: Cancer & Oncology Authors: Tags: Review Source Type: research