Working Memory Performance Among Childhood Brain Tumor Survivors

Brain Tumor Patients

• Treated for a primary central nervous system (CNS) tumor with conformal radiation therapy and enrolled on the institutional protocol RT-1
• Initiated radiation therapy at least 2 years prior to enrollment with no evidence of recurrent disease
• Age 8-18 years inclusive at the time of enrollment, with sampling to obtain a broad cross-section of participants in terms of age, tumor location and time since RT initiation
• English as the primary language
• Research participant and one parent willing to participate and provide consent/assent according to institutional guidelines

Solid Tumor Patient Controls

• Treated for a solid tumor (i.e., Ewing's sarcoma, osteosarcoma, soft tissue/rhabdomyosarcoma, neuroblastoma or Wilms tumor) at St. Jude without CNS directed therapy - Diagnosed at least 2 years prior to enrollment
• Age 8-18 inclusive at the time of enrollment, with age, gender and race sampling to broadly match the brain tumor group
• English as the primary language
• Research participant and one parent willing to participate and provide consent/assent according to institutional guidelines

Sibling Controls

• Healthy sibling controls- siblings of St. Jude patients treated for a brain tumor (not necessarily on RT-1)
• Age 8-18 inclusive, with age and gender sampling to broadly match the patient group
• English as a primary language
• Research participant and one parent willing to participate and provide consent/assent according to institutional guidelines

Exclusion Criteria:

Brain Tumor Patients

• Significant impairment in global intellectual functioning (operationalized as an estimated IQ less than 70 as indicated by most recent RT-1 testing)
• History of documented CNS injury or disease predating cancer diagnosis
• History of documented Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) predating cancer diagnosis by at least one year (must have been diagnosed by a physician with medication prescribed)
• Treatment with psychostimulant or psychotropic medication within two weeks of study enrollment
• Sensory or motor impairment that would preclude valid cognitive testing

Solid Tumor and Sibling Controls

• Significant impairment in global intellectual functioning (operationalized as a history of special education in a self-contained classroom)
• History of documented CNS injury or disease
• History of documented Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) (must have been diagnosed by a physician with medication prescribed)
• Treatment with psychostimulant or psychotropic medication within two weeks of study enrollment
• Sensory or motor impairment that would preclude valid cognitive testing