Optic pathway gliomas (OPGs) are relatively common and benign lesions in children; however, in adults these lesions are nearly always malignant and hold a very poor prognosis.
Presenting at <1 year of age, diencephalic features, non-NF1 status, and location along the posterior pathway have been typically associated with a more aggressive disease course 1) 2).
Patients with NF-l and those older than 10 years have a better prognosis, whereas patients younger than 3 years and those with hypothalamic-chiasmatic optic glioma have a worse outcome. 3).
1)
Laithier V, Grill J, Le Deley MC, et al. Progression-free survival in children with optic pathway tumors: dependence on age and the quality of the response to chemotherapy—results of the first French prospective study for the French Society of Pediatric Oncology. J Clin Oncol. 2003;21(24):4572–4578.
2)
Khafaga Y, Hassounah M, Kandil A, et al. Optic gliomas: a retrospective analysis of 50 cases. Int J Radiat Oncol Biol Phys. 2003;56(3):807–812.
3)
Varan A, Batu A, Cila A, Soylemezoğlu F, Balcı S, Akalan N, Zorlu F, Akyüz C, Kutluk T, Büyükpamukçu M. Optic glioma in children: a retrospective analysis of 101 cases. Am J Clin Oncol. 2013 Jun;36(3):287-92. doi:
10.1097/COC.0b013e3182467efa. PubMed PMID: 22547006.