Multidisciplinary recommendations for routine follow-up of isocitrate dehydrogenase‑mutant glioma in 2026: Adapting clinical practice to the molecular era.

Grade 2 and most grade 3 isocitrate dehydrogenase (IDH) mutant diffuse gliomas are slow growing tumors, for which however no curative treatment is available. Although surgery as extensive as possible improves outcome, for virtually all patients at some point in time further treatment is necessary. Treatment with radiotherapy and chemotherapy is very effective in controlling tumor growth in most patients, but has side effects. Therefore, in many patients these are postponed and a postoperative "watch-and-wait" observational strategy is followed. With the approval of IDH inhibitors, another effective strategy has emerged allowing further delay of treatment with radiotherapy and chemotherapy. This underscores the need for guidance how to best follow these patients during their subsequent phases of treatment, but most guidelines give only minimal recommendations for follow-up. Follow-up should not be limited to imaging only, but should also routinely assess seizures and cognition of patients. Follow-up intervals should be based on the risk of progression, allowing longer intervals for patients with oligodendroglioma, for more definitively treated patients and for patients with longer lasting disease stabilization. Evidence justifying a more intensive follow-up of patients on IDH inhibitors than for patients on a "watch-and-wait" strategy is lacking. Assessing a growth trajectory over time and routine two-dimensional or three-dimensional tumor assessment will allow identification of early changes in growth rate. This manuscript provides guidance for optimal follow-up of these patients with perspectives from all involved disciplines, as indeed the follow-up of these patients needs to be truly multidisciplinary, at every step along the pathway of these patients.