1/44. Malignant glial tumor arising from the site of a previous hamartoma/ganglioglioma: coincidence or malignant transformation?Gangliogliomas are generally considered benign tumors. Although more commonly found in the brain, spinal cord ganglioglioma is a well established, albeit infrequent, entity. We describe a 2-decade clinical course of a patient initially diagnosed with a thoracolumbar 'glial-neuronal hamartoma' at age 4. Seventeen years after his first operation, local recurrence was noted. Despite subsequent multiple gross total resections and adjuvant therapy, histologic features became increasingly ominous and ultimately proved fatal. This is an unusual report and histologic presentation of a resected spinal cord ganglioglioma recurring as an anaplastic ependymoma/astrocytoma and subsequently a glioblastoma. It is quite likely that the originally resected ganglioglioma was actually part of a primitive neuroectodermal tumor which had undergone extensive maturation.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = brain (Clic here for more details about this article) |
2/44. thallium-201 single-photon emission computed tomographic and proton magnetic resonance spectroscopic characteristics of intracranial ganglioglioma: three technical case reports.OBJECTIVE: The correlation between thallium-201 (201TI) uptake, semiquantitative choline-containing compound values measured by proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy (1H-MRS), and Ki-67 labeling indexes (LIs) was investigated in three gangliogliomas. methods: The early and delayed 201TI indexes were calculated as the ratio of tumor to normal brain tissue uptake by 201TI single-photon emission computed tomography. Single-voxel 1H-MRS was performed to measure the levels of metabolites in the tumors. Ki-67 LI was measured in the surgical specimens. RESULTS: All three gangliogliomas showed very high 201TI uptake on both early and delayed images. 1H-MRS demonstrated malignancy based on the high choline peak relative to the creatine and N-acetylaspartate peaks. Ki-67 LI was less than 1% in two gangliogliomas and 3.5% in an anaplastic ganglioglioma. CONCLUSION: Both 201TI single-photon emission computed tomography and 1H-MRS indicated malignancy, whereas Ki-67 LI indicated low growth activity. 201TI single-photon emission computed tomography and 1H-MRS of ganglioglioma might be affected by metabolic characteristics other than growth activity.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = brain (Clic here for more details about this article) |
3/44. ganglioglioma of the trigeminal nerve: MRI.ganglioglioma of the cranial nerves is extremely rare; only a few cases involving the optic nerves have been reported. We present a case of ganglioglioma of the trigeminal nerve, which was isointense with the brain stem on all MRI sequences and showed no contrast enhancement.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = brain (Clic here for more details about this article) |
4/44. ganglioglioma in a patient with Turcot syndrome. Case report.A 33-year-old woman with Turcot syndrome harbored a brain tumor and colon cancer and had a familial history of this syndrome. On histological examination, the brain tumor was found to have large and diffusely scattered ganglion cells within a diffuse background of astrocytic cells in a fibrillary matrix. The tumor was diagnosed as a ganglioglioma. No germline mutation in the adenomatous polyposis coli gene was detected using a protein truncation assay. These findings indicate that this patient had brain tumor-polyposis syndrome Type 1 of Turcot syndrome. This is the first report of a ganglioglioma related to Turcot syndrome.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 3keywords = brain (Clic here for more details about this article) |
5/44. ganglioglioma with a tanycytic ependymoma as the glial component.We studied a cystic ganglioglioma (GG) located in the right frontal lobe of the brain. Interestingly, the fibrillary spindle glial cells were often arranged in a fascicular pattern, and the generally uniform, round-to-oval delicate nuclei appeared to resemble those of ependymoma; and the neoplastic neurons often contained neurofibrillary tangles (NFTs). The glial component was positive for glial fibrillary acidic protein and occasionally contained granular or microvesicular structures positive for epithelial membrane antigen. Ultrastructural investigation revealed that the glial cells were ependymal in nature; intracytoplasmic lumina and intercellular microrosettes lined with cilia and microvilli, as well as long zonulae adherentes, were evident. In addition, chromogranin a-positive granular staining, neurosecretory-granule-like structures, and parallel arrays of microtubules were sometimes associated with the blood vessels. We considered the present case to be an unusual example of GG with an ependymoma, more precisely a tanycytic ependymoma, as the glial component; to our knowledge, the existence of ependymoma as the main glial component of this particular tumor has not been described before. The occurrence of NFTs, which has been reported in several cases of GG, was an additional, unusual feature.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = brain (Clic here for more details about this article) |
6/44. Respiratory control and respiratory sensation in a patient with a ganglioglioma within the dorsocaudal brain stem.We encountered a young woman with severe central sleep apnea caused by a medullary glioma located slightly dorsal to and to the right of the midline, a region not generally associated with CO(2) chemosensitivity. The patient had normal spirometric readings, lung volumes, diffusing capacity, maximal inspiratory pressure, and alveolar-arterial oxygen difference. While awake, she displayed marked irregularity in her breathing pattern; her end-tidal CO(2) (FET(CO(2))) ranged from 5.3 to 10.9%. During voluntary hyperpnea, she could quickly reduce her FET(CO(2)) to 4.2%, but her PCO(2) did not change after administration of acetazolamide or progesterone. Like patients with congenital central hypoventilation syndrome (CCHS), our patient had a relatively intact ventilatory response to exercise; her PCO(2) was high at the start of exercise and increased slightly thereafter. In contrast to CCHS patients, however, our patient had an intact hypoxic ventilatory response (DeltaVE/ DeltaSa(O(2)) = -0.37 L/min/Sa(O(2))). In further contrast to CCHS patients, our patient had a very short breathholding time and described a sensation of air hunger as the factor limiting her breathholding ability. Her heart rate and blood pressure responses to the valsalva maneuver were normal.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 4keywords = brain (Clic here for more details about this article) |
7/44. High F-18 FDG uptake in a low-grade supratentorial ganglioma: a positron emission tomography case report.PURPOSE: Positron emission tomography (PET) with fluorine-18 fluorodeoxyglucose (F-18 FDG) is used for the noninvasive monitoring and grading of primary brain tumors. Here the FDG uptake is positively correlated with the malignant extent of the lesion and thereby negatively correlated with patient survival. Little is known about the FDG PET features of primary brain tumors in children, such as mixed neuronal-glial tumors. methods: The authors describe a 13-year-old boy who had partial complex seizures since early childhood caused by a brain tumor in the left temporal lobe. RESULTS: Magnetic resonance and computed tomographic examinations yielded uncharacteristic results: mixed density, marked calcifications, little contrast enhancement, a nearly absent mass effect, and no edema. The FDG PET scan revealed a large hypermetabolic tumor, with a tumor: contralateral gray matter FDG uptake ratio of 1.45. In contrast to this intense hypermetabolism, the pathologic analysis after gross total resection revealed a low-grade ganglioglioma (WHO grade 1), which is usually associated with an excellent prognosis. CONCLUSIONS: Mixed neuronal-glial tumors such as gangliogliomas must be considered in making differential diagnoses by judging hypermetabolic FDG PET scans in young patients with brain tumors in the presence of uncharacteristic imaging features.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 4keywords = brain (Clic here for more details about this article) |
8/44. ganglioglioma of the optic chiasm: case report and review of the literature.We report a case of a hypothalamic chiasmatic ganglioglioma in a 21-year-old woman who presented with hyperprolactinemia and developed visual field defects. This circumscribed cystic lesion with an enhancing mural nodule was radiologically indistinguishable from a pilocytic astrocytoma. Although rare, gangliogliomas should be included in the differential diagnosis of lesions occurring in this area of the brain.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = brain (Clic here for more details about this article) |
9/44. Papillary glioneuronal tumor.Tumors of mixed glioneuronal type are well recognized in the central nervous system. The most common examples of these lesions include gangliogliomas and dysembryoplastic neuroepithelial tumors. Recently, unusual examples of these lesions have been described, including the papillary glioneuronal tumor. This report describes a histologically similar-appearing lesion arising in the left parieto-occipital lobe of an 18-year-old man who presented with headaches and difficulties with vision. Imaging studies noted a large cystic neoplasm marked by a peripheral rim of enhancement. The patient underwent gross total resection of the tumor, which histologically was marked by a mixture of glial (glial fibrillary acidic protein-positive) and neural (synaptophysin-positive) components. Architecturally, the tumor was notable for a focal pseudopapillary pattern. Papillae were lined by predominantly glial cells, with intervening areas occupied by neurally differentiated cells. Mitotic activity, vascular proliferation, and necrosis were not noted. A MIB-1 labeling index of 1.1% was seen. p53 immunoreactivity was not observed. This report adds further evidence supporting the existence of this unusual mixed glioneuronal tumor of the central nervous system.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 8.9899671918637keywords = central nervous system, nervous system (Clic here for more details about this article) |
10/44. Ganglioneurocytoma mimicking a malignant tumor: case report with a literature review of the MRI appearance of neurocytomas and gangliogliomas.A 14-year-old girl presented with symptoms of increased intracranial pressure after her head was squeezed at a party. MRI demonstrated a mass that was hypointense to brain on T1WI and heterogeneous in signal on PD and T2WI; compression of the ventricle, midline shift, and mild ventriculomegaly also were present. Contrast enhancement was extensive and heterogeneous, mimicking a malignant tumor. Neuropathology revealed a ganglioneurocytoma.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = brain (Clic here for more details about this article) |
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