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Enrique et al. J Cancer Metastasis Treat 2019;5:54 Journal of Cancer
DOI: 10.20517/2394-4722.2019.20 Metastasis and Treatment

Review Open Access

Diagnosis and management of brain metastases:
an updated review from a radiation oncology

perspective

Gutiérrez-Valencia Enrique , Sánchez-Rodríguez Irving , Balderrama-Ibarra Ricardo , Fuentes-Lara
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Jesús , Rios-Martínez Alan , Vázquez Aldana Arroyo Iñigo , Bayardo-López Luis , Hernández Chávez
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Allan , Puebla-Mora Ana Graciela , Nader-Roa Liliana , Espíritu-Rodríguez Roque 3
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1 Instituto Mexicano del Seguro Social (IMSS), Departamento de Radio-Oncología, Centro Médico Nacional de Occidente,
Universidad de Guadalajara, Guadalajara 44340, México.
2 Instituto Mexicano del Seguro Social (IMSS), Departamento de Anatomía Patológica, Centro Médico Nacional de Occidente,
Universidad de Guadalajara, Guadalajara 44340, México.
3 Instituto Mexicano del Seguro Social (IMSS), Departamento de Física Médica, Centro Médico Nacional de Occidente,
Guadalajara 44340, México.
Correspondence to: Dr. Gutiérrez-Valencia Enrique, Departamento de Radio-Oncología, Centro Médico Nacional de
Occidente, Universidad de Guadalajara, Belisario Domínguez 1000, Col. Independencia Oriente, PC 44340, Guadalajara,
Jalisco, México. E-mail: jeguval@hotmail.com
How to cite this article: Enrique GV, Irving SR, Ricardo BI, Jesús FL, Alan RM, Iñigo VAA, Luis BL, Allan HC, Graciela PMA, Liliana
NR, Roque ER. Diagnosis and management of brain metastases: an updated review from a radiation oncology perspective.
J Cancer Metastasis Treat 2019;5:54. http://dx.doi.org/10.20517/2394-4722.2019.20
Received: 6 Mar 2019 First Decision: 12 Apr 2019 Revised: 14 May 2019 Accepted: 16 May 2019 Published: 11 Jul 2019
Science Editor: William Schiemann Copy Editor: Cai-Hong Wang Production Editor: Jing Yu

Abstract
Brain metastasis are the most common intracranial malignancy in the adult population. Their incidence has increased
dramatically over the last 20 years, as a result of the increasing number of cases stemming from lung and breast
cancer together with the higher cancer survival rates due to diagnostic and therapeutic advances. More than 40%
of cancer patients develop brain metastases during the course of their disease: specifically, they appear in 50%
of patients with lung cancer, more than 25% of patients with breast cancer, and 20% of patients with melanoma.
Diagnosis is made using different imaging approaches, such as computed tomography and magnetic resonance
imaging, accompanied by clinical manifestations and a history of malignancy supporting the diagnosis of a brain
metastasis. Current treatment options should be oriented to the patient’s current performance, the number of
intracranial and extracranial lesions, and related factors. Although surgical resection and whole-brain radiotherapy
have been standard treatments for many years, numerous treatment modalities have become more easily available
and accepted worldwide, producing more favorable and reliable results. Among these is stereotactic radiosurgery,
and the latest clinical trials support this treatment.

© The Author(s) 2019. Open Access This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0
International License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use,
sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, for any purpose, even commercially, as long
as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license,
and indicate if changes were made.

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