Re: Neuro-ophthalmic and clinical characteristics of brain tumours in a tertiary hospital in Ghana

Abstract

The tumour frequencies quoted in the article are markedly different from prior reports published from Ghana. The prior published reports put Astrocytoma at 42%; meningioma 19% and pituitary adenoma at 11%.1 This poses a severe limitation on the article's results and conclusions that pituitary adenoma and meningioma are the commonest brain tumours as less than 50% of the pituitary adenomas and only 30% of the meningiomas were confirmed histologically. The article states that only 13 out of a total of 36 brain tumours that presented at the tertiary centre that has a dedicated neurosurgical department (and a training program for neurosurgical residents) were operated on during a 12 month period. It is stated that only 13 of the patients could afford surgery.