The Trouble with Trials: Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials Comparing Stereotactic Radiosurgery, Whole Brain Radiotherapy, and Observation for Resected Metastatic Brain Disease.

Khalil St Brice, Baylee Stevens, Avital Perry, Victor M Lu, Shearwood McClelland, Tyler Gunter, Christopher S Graffeo

Abstract readReview

In one paragraph

Review in Cancers, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

0numbers the graph read from it

0cells of the map it votes in

0citing papers in PubMed

–field-weighted citation impact

1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

7 authors.

Khalil St BriceDepartment of Neurosurgery, University of Oklahoma, Oklahoma City, OK 73104, USA.

Baylee StevensDepartment of Neurosurgery, University of Oklahoma, Oklahoma City, OK 73104, USA.

Avital PerryDepartment of Neurosurgery, Sheba Medical Center, Tel Aviv 52621, Israel.

Victor M LuDepartment of Neurosurgery, University of Miami, Miami, FL 33136, USA.

Shearwood McClellandDepartment of Neurosurgery, University of Oklahoma, Oklahoma City, OK 73104, USA.

Tyler GunterDepartment of Radiation Oncology, University of Oklahoma, Oklahoma City, OK 73104, USA.

Christopher S GraffeoDepartment of Neurosurgery, University of Oklahoma, Oklahoma City, OK 73104, USA.ORCID 0000-0001-5314-1067

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

PubMed holds no abstract for this paper.

Indexed as

brain metastasescognitive declinemeta-analysisoverall survivalstereotactic radiosurgerysystematic reviewwhole brain radiotherapy

Identifiers

PMID41976371

DOI10.3390/cancers18071149

PMCPMC13072340

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata

LicenceCC BY

Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.