Researchers uncover the driving force behind a lethal infant brain tumor

An international team led by researchers at Baylor College of Medicine, Texas Children's Hospital, McGill University and University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine has discovered what drives the growth of a lethal pediatric brain tumor called posterior fossa type A (PFA) ependymoma. The researchers report in the journal Nature that androgens, commonly known as male hormones, promote the growth of PFA ependymomas but not other brain tumors.