Generously funded by Donors of Brain Tumour Foundation of Canada

Stefan Lang – University of British Columbia, BC

Project Title: “Simulating brain tumour resection to optimize onco-functional balance”

Description of Project:

Cognition (i.e. attention, memory and decision-making) is critical for quality of life in low-grade glioma patients. Preserving cognitive abilities is increasingly seen as an objective surgery. It is known that brain networks are involved in cognitive abilities, and surgery can have an impact on these networks. However, in many cases surgeons may not know if a certain surgical plan will have detrimental effects on brain networks and cognition. This often means surgeons cannot predict if their surgical plan will result in damage to these networks and a decline in cognitive function. To overcome this, virtual brain models could be used to simulate the effects of a proposed surgery on cognitive brain networks before the real surgery takes place. These models can be personalized using patient MRI data. In this project, we aim to assess the use of these virtual models in predicting cognitive outcomes in low-grade glioma patients. These virtual brain surgery simulations might one day allow surgeons to customize surgical approaches to safely remove the maximum amount of tumour while minimizing cognitive deficits.

What receiving this award means:

Being honored with the 2023 Brain Tumour Foundation of Canada Research Grant is a pivotal step for my nascent lab, propelling a high-risk, high-reward project. This grant not only provides essential funding but also validates the innovative potential of our work. Ultimately, we hope to use advanced MRI and computational modelling to strike a critical balance in tumour removal, maximizing patient outcomes while minimizing functional impairment.

Midpoint Update – January 2025

The initial few months involved administrative work to obtain ethics approval, to acquire the neuropsychology software and train our research assistant to use it, and to work with the UBC MRI center to set up the MRI acquisition protocol. Following this, we began recruiting subjects. This study has enrolled five participants to date. Among them, one participant has successfully completed the entire study, including both pre- and postop scans, pre- and postop cognitive assessment, and resection surgery. Two participants have undergone their pre-surgery scans, cognitive assessments and surgery, while the remaining two have scheduled dates for their pre-surgery scans and surgeries. In the coming months, we will finish the follow-up for the recruited subjects, and we aim to continue subject recruitment. The recruitment of subjects has been slow given that we are looking only to recruit subjects with low grade glioma. We are on track to recruit 10 subjects by the end of the funding period. However, we are hoping to increase recruitment to our goal of 20 subjects, after which we will begin data analysis.