Specialty oncology MedlinePlus 001024 | ICD-10 C72.3 eMedicine radio/486 | |
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MeSH C04.557.465.625.600.380.080.667 | ||
Optic nerve glioma (or optic glioma), a form of glioma which affects the optic nerve, is often one of the central nervous system manifestations of Neurofibromatosis 1.
Contents
Optic gliomas are usually pilocytic tumors, and can involve the optic nerve or optic chiasm. Optic gliomas are usually associated with neurofibromatosis type 1 in 30% of patients.
Treatment
While radiation or chemotherapy may be helpful, treatment is often not necessary. Optical gliomas often cannot be surgically resected. If no visual symptoms wait 6 months and then in 6 months only treat if there are symptoms (visual loss, eye pain), otherwise do not treat.
Prognosis
Optic gliomas often have a shifting clinical course, with sporadic periods of vision loss separated by long periods of visual stability. Optic gliomas rarely spontaneously regress.