A large scale multi-dataset investigation of brain metastases distribution based on primary cancer type

Brain metastases (BM) present a significant clinical challenge, characterized by poor prognosis and high morbidity. Previous research has demonstrated heterogeneous distribution patterns of BMs depending on the primary tumor type. This study aims to investigate the spatial distribution patterns of BMs across different datasets and explore the heterogeneity of these patterns. Utilizing three public datasets and one private dataset, we analyzed 1344 patients with a total of 9431 identified BMs, categorizing them into lung, breast, melanoma, kidney cancer, and other groups. The frequency distribution map of each type of BMs is drawn. We found that lung cancer BMs predominantly localize in the cerebellum, as well as the frontal, temporal, occipital, and parietal lobes. Breast cancer BMs are commonly found in the cerebellum, frontal, occipital, and temporal lobes, while melanoma BMs are most frequently located in the occipital, temporal, and frontal lobes. Kidney cancer BMs, less studied in existing literature, primarily affect the frontal and temporal lobes. Additionally, we found that there are strong statistical differences between the volume distribution and BM types, with lung and breast cancer BMs are more likely to have smaller tumor volumes compared to melanoma and kidney cancer BMs. Our findings confirm and expand upon previous research, offering new insights into the distribution and characteristics of kidney cancer BMs.