A Feasibility Study of Advanced MRI in Paediatric Brain Tumours

This study will assess the safety and practicality of conducting advanced MRI scans for children aged 8-16 with a newly diagnosed type of brain tumour known as low grade glioma (LGG), at Cardiff University Brain Research Imaging Centre (CUBRIC).

It is not currently understood why certain brain tumours behave more aggressively despite sharing similar appearances on current testing. For example, two patients may have LGG that appears the same under the microscope and shares the same genetic results, but one may never grow back after surgery and the other may relapse, causing lifelong disability and blindness.

In this project, the advanced MRI will look at the tumour structure in more detail than can currently be seen on standard scans. It is hoped that this greater detail may help to understand why some tumours behave more aggressively.

If this study is found to be realistic, practical and safe, a larger study will be conducted to assess if advanced MRI combined with genetic testing of the tumour after surgery may predict the probability of relapse. It is hoped that the impact of understanding this would pave the way for more accurate and personalised follow up, with more scans for those who need it and fewer for those who don’t.