1/66. Case of the month: January 1999--fetus with echogenic mass in third ventricle.A 29-week gestational age newborn male infant was found to have an echogenic mass in the 3rd ventricle by prenatal ultrasound 2 weeks prior to delivery. At delivery he was poorly responsive and had hydrocephalus and ascites. A CT scan after birth showed cerebral infarction, amorphous tissue in the left hemisphere and numerous calcifications. Despite supportive treatment he died 4 days after birth. Postmortem examination of the brain revealed marked distortion of the architecture and a supratentorial undifferentiated neoplasm consistent with a PNET. The tumor showed extensive areas of hemorrhage and necrosis and involvement of lateral and third ventricles, brain parenchyma, and meninges.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = neoplasm (Clic here for more details about this article) |
2/66. Pediatric neuroblastic brain tumors containing abundant neuropil and true rosettes.We have encountered a series of seven unusual neuroblastic pediatric central nervous system (CNS) neoplasms with a unique constellation of histologic, immunohistochemical, and ultrastructural features. The tumors presented in five girls and two boys, ages 1 to 3 years. In six cases the lesions involved the frontoparietal region, in one case the tectal plate. The tumors consisted of small to medium-sized, round to oval, hyperchromatic cells with poorly defined cytoplasmic borders. cells were found in clusters and cords set in a paucicellular fibrillar neuropil matrix. Distinctive, virtually anuclear regions of neuropil were scattered throughout the lesions. True rosettes with well-formed central lumens often filled with granular debris were present, along with perivascular pseudorosettes and occasional Homer-Wright rosettes. Mitoses and apoptosis were frequent, but large regions of confluent necrosis were absent. Immunohistochemically, the neuropil-like areas as well as the perinuclear cytoplasm of many embryonal tumor cells were positive for synaptophysin and neurofilament protein. Ultrastructurally, the tumor cells showed microtubule-containing neuronal processes, some with neurosecretory granules. While the lesions were largely glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) negative, there was focal GFAP positivity consistent with divergent differentiation in one case. The clinical outcome was poor, with five patients dead from their disease 5 to 14 months after initial presentation and one patient with recurrent disease 7 months after resection and chemotherapy. The final patient is alive without recurrent disease 30 months after initial presentation. These lesions present distinctive histological features within the group of primitive neuroectodermal tumors.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = neoplasm (Clic here for more details about this article) |
3/66. Supratentorial primitive neuroectodermal tumours: diffusion-weighted MRI.We report the clinical and pathological findings of supratentorial primitive neuroectodermal tumours (PNETs). These are rare, poorly differentiated, highly malignant neoplasms occurring primarily in young individuals. They frequently show dissemination to the spinal cord and sometimes also beyond neuraxis. Preoperative radiological diagnosis is difficult, due to the nonspecific CT and MRI characteristics. Our findings indicate that diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) can be used to show the solid portion of the tumour preoperatively and to monitor postsurgical recovery. We describe the MRI findings in three patients with histologically confirmed supratentorial PNET, focussing on the role of DWI for improving the specificity of radiological diagnosis.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = neoplasm (Clic here for more details about this article) |
4/66. Primitive neuroectodermal tumor of the pancreas. An extremely rare tumor. Case report and review of the literature.Peripheral primitive neuroectodermal tumor (PPNET) is a malignant neoplasm of the peripheral nervous system and soft tissues. Representing the fourth case published we herein report a PPNET arising in the pancreas of a six year old girl. She presented with severe anemia due to ulcerative tumor growth and hemorrhage into the duodenum. From the first biopsy pancreatoblastoma was considered as histological diagnosis. Therefore pancreato-duodenectomy was successfully performed. Immunohistochemically, the tumor cells were positive for cytokeratines and several neuronal markers. Due to focal membranous staining for MIC-2 gene product and rosettes in one lymph node metastasis the diagnosis had to be altered into PPNET. This was confirmed by cytogenetic analysis. We conclude that the interpretation of histologic sample excisions from pediatric pancreatic neoplasms may be difficult and that PPNET should be included in the differential diagnosis.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 2keywords = neoplasm (Clic here for more details about this article) |
5/66. Prolonged cerebral salt wasting syndrome associated with the intraventricular dissemination of brain tumors. Report of two cases and review of the literature.hyponatremia is a frequent event in neurosurgery practice and is usually associated with subarachnoid hemorrhage, head trauma, infections and neoplasms. The two common clinical manifestations are the inappropriate secretion of antidiuretic hormone (SIADH) and the cerebral salt wasting syndrome (CSWS), which were usually attributed to each other due to identical clinical presentation. In contrast to the better-recognized SIADH, there has not been a uniform consensus over the humoral and neural mechanisms of CSWS and functional aspects of renal response. In this article, we report on 2 cases of a primitive neuroectodermal tumor with prolonged CSWS manifested during the intraventricular dissemination of primary disease and the high catabolic stage.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = neoplasm (Clic here for more details about this article) |
6/66. Primitive neuroectodermal tumor of the diaphragm: a case report.We present a case of primitive neuroectodermal tumor (PNET) arising from the diaphragm in a neonate. PNETs are rare malignant tumors that belong to the group of small, round, blue-cell neoplasms of childhood. To the best of our knowledge, a PNET originating from the diaphragm has not been previously reported.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = neoplasm (Clic here for more details about this article) |
7/66. Primitive neuroectodermal tumor of cerebrum with adipose tissue.Primitive neuroectodermal tumors (PNETs) of the central nervous system are uncommon embryonal neoplasms, rarely occurring in adults. Differentiation into specific mesenchymal tissues, such as cartilage, bone, skeletal muscle, smooth muscle, or adipose tissue, is rare. We report a case of a 51-year-old woman with a PNET of cerebrum that showed extensive mature adipose tissue differentiation. This is the second case, to our knowledge, of PNET of cerebrum with adipose tissue elements that has been described.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = neoplasm (Clic here for more details about this article) |
8/66. Metastatic primitive neuroectodermal tumor of the kidney in adults.OBJECTIVE: Primitive neuroectodermal tumors (PNET) of the kidney are rare and highly aggressive malignancies. The purpose of our study was to present information about the management of patients with metastatic disease. methods: The records of 2 patients (30-year-old female and 32-year-old male) with metastatic PNET of the kidney were reviewed and our data compared with the literature. RESULTS: Neither clinical evaluation nor radiological methods allowed to distinguish PNET from renal cell carcinoma. immunohistochemistry revealed strong positivity for CD99 in tumor 1 and weak positivity for NSE and vimentin in both tumors. In tumor 2, EWS/FLI1 translocation was detected by RT-PCR. Patient 1 underwent nephrectomy, seven cycles of polychemotherapy, two cycles of high-dose chemotherapy, autologous bone marrow rescue, radiotherapy of suspicious skeletal foci and is without evidence of recurrent disease 28 months after therapy. Patient 2 underwent six cycles of polychemotherapy, nephrectomy, high-dose chemotherapy with cyclophosphamide and abdominal radiotherapy. Because of relapse high-dose chemotherapy with stem cell rescue was not performed. He underwent three further cycles of polychemotherapy and died one year after diagnosis due to cerebral metastasis. CONCLUSIONS: The diagnosis of renal PNET must be considered in young patients with renal neoplasm, particularly those with advanced disease at presentation. Achieving exact diagnosis has important clinical consequences because polychemotherapy and high-dose chemotherapy may lead to dramatic tumor reduction or even complete remission.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = neoplasm (Clic here for more details about this article) |
9/66. Primary Ewing's sarcoma/peripheral primitive neuroectodermal tumor at the vertex of the skull with elevated serum carcinoembryonic antigen: case report.A primary Ewing's sarcoma arising in the skull is relatively rare. Although a small number of case reports noted elevated carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) in patients with primary central nervous system (CNS) neoplasms, there is no report of Ewing's sarcoma/peripheral primitive neuroectodermal tumor (PNET) with elevated serum levels of CEA. A 7-year-old boy who had episodes of headache and vomiting had noticed a solid mass in the vertex of the head. Imaging studies revealed a large intra- and extracranial tumor at the vertex of the skull. Hematological examination demonstrated high serum levels of CEA: 91.09 ng/ml. The patient initially underwent an embolization of the bilateral middle meningeal arteries with Gelfoam particles. One week later, the patient was operated on and a subtotal resection of the tumor was performed. On histopathological and molecular genetic examination, the tumor was diagnosed as a Ewing's sarcoma/peripheral PNET. Immunohistochemical study showed strongly positive staining for CEA in the tumor cells. The serum level of CEA was normalized at 0.83 ng/ml after the tumor was removed and the boy underwent radiotherapy and 3 courses of chemotherapy. This is the first reported case of a primary Ewing's sarcoma/peripheral PNET at the vertex of the skull with elevated serum CEA.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = neoplasm (Clic here for more details about this article) |
10/66. Foreign body reaction to hemostatic materials mimicking recurrent brain tumor. Report of three cases.Chemical agents routinely used in neurosurgery to achieve intraoperative hemostasis can cause a foreign body reaction, which appears on magnetic resonance (MR) images to be indistinguishable from recurrent tumor. Clinical and/or imaging evidence of progression of disease early after surgical resection or during aggressive treatment may actually be distinct features of granuloma in these circumstances. A series of three cases was retrospectively analyzed for clinical, imaging, surgical, and pathological findings, and the consequences they held for further disease management. All patients were boys (3, 3, and 6 years of age, respectively) and all harbored primitive neuroectodermal tumors. Two tumors were located in the posterior fossa and one was located in the right parietal lobe. Two boys exhibited clinical symptoms, which were unexpected under the circumstances and prompted new imaging studies. One patient was asymptomatic and imaging was performed at planned routine time intervals. The MR images revealed circumscribed, streaky enhancement in the resection cavity that was suggestive of recurrent disease. This occurred 2 to 7 months after the first surgery. At repeated surgery, the resected material had the macroscopic appearance of gelatin sponge in one case and firm scar tissue in the other cases. Histological analysis revealed foreign body granulomas in the resected material, with Gelfoam or Surgicel as the underlying cause. No recurrent tumor was found and the second surgery resulted in imaging-confirmed complete resection in all three patients. Because recurrent disease was absent, the patients continued to participate in their original treatment protocols. All patients remain free from disease 34, 32, and 19 months after the first operation, respectively. During or after treatment for a central nervous system neoplasm, if unexpected clinical or imaging evidence of recurrence is found, a second-look operation may be necessary to determine the true nature of the findings. If the resection yields recurrent tumor, additional appropriate oncological treatment is warranted, but if a foreign body reaction is found, potentially harmful therapy can be withheld or postponed.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = neoplasm (Clic here for more details about this article) |
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