Cerebral metastases are brain tumors secondary to the existence of a primary tumor, most often lung or breast, more rarely kidney, skin or colon, whose cells colonize the brain.
Their management involves surgery, radiosurgery, radiotherapy and, more recently, targeted therapies. The strategy is adapted not only to the characteristics of the cerebral localizations, but also to the overall status of the primary disease (degree of extension, impact on the patient’s clinical condition, lines of chemotherapy available).
Surgery is most useful for large, symptomatic lesions, radiosurgery for small, limited numbers of lesions (up to 4), and radiotherapy for multiple lesions (> 10). Between 4 and 10 lesions, the decision is made on a case-by-case basis, depending on the overall prognosis of the primary cancer.