Incidence and Outcomes of High-Grade Gliomas in Young Adults: An Emerging Challenge

Abstract

Objective: High-grade gliomas are typically associated with older age, whereas low-grade gliomas are more common in young people. However, in recent years, there has been a surge in high-grade gliomas among the young population in our area, which prompted us to examine this phenomenon more closely and its implications for treatment. To measure the incidence of high-grade gliomas in the young population and to examine trends. In addition, we examined the molecular characteristics of these gliomas and the postoperative outcomes following resection.

Materials & Methods: A retrospective study was conducted in our department, in which we reviewed patient records from January 2022 to July 2025. We included 85 patients in our final cohort aged 18 to 39 years with a confirmed diagnosis of high-grade glioma (WHO Grades III and IV). Our exclusion criteria were individuals with low-grade gliomas, non-glial tumors, or incomplete records. From available patient records, we extracted demographic data, tumor incidence, molecular markers (IDH, MGMT, ATRX), and clinical outcomes. Statistical analysis was done on SPSS version 26.

Results: Results showed a statistically significant increase in the incidence of high-grade gliomas in young adults (p < 0.01). Molecular analysis revealed that IDH-wildtype tumors accounted for 74% (37 of 50 cases). Of these, 43.2% exhibited MGMT promoter methylation (16 of 37). Among the IDH-mutant cases (26%, 13 of 50), ATRX loss was present in 84.6% (11 of 13 cases). The median overall survival was 16.5 months.