Systematic comparison of MRI findings in pediatric ependymoblastoma with ependymoma and CNS primitive neuroectodermal tumor not otherwise specified

Background/Purpose: Ependymoblastoma (EBL), ependymoma (EP), and primitive neuroectodermal tumor of the central nervous system (CNS-PNET NOS = not otherwise specified) are pediatric brain tumors that can be differentiated by histopathology in the clinical setting. Recently, we first described specif...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Clinical neuroradiology (Munich) 2015-09, Vol.25 (S1), p.38
Main Authors: Nowak, J, Seidel, C, Pietsch, T, Alkonyi, B, Fuss, T.L, Friedrich, C, von Hoff, K, Rutkowski, S, Warmuth-Metz, M
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Brain tumors
Comparative analysis
Diagnosis
Magnetic resonance imaging
Pediatrics
Online Access:Get full text
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Summary:Background/Purpose: Ependymoblastoma (EBL), ependymoma (EP), and primitive neuroectodermal tumor of the central nervous system (CNS-PNET NOS = not otherwise specified) are pediatric brain tumors that can be differentiated by histopathology in the clinical setting. Recently, we first described specific MRI features of EBL. In this study, we compare standardized MRI characteristics of EBL with EP and CNS-PNET NOS in a series comprising of 22 patients in each group. Materials and methods: We systematically analyzed the initial cranial MRI scans at diagnosis according to 25 standardized criteria, and paired comparison was performed for EBL and EP, as well as for EBL and CNS-PNET NOS. All 66 cases of this multi-center study were centrally reviewed regarding histopathology, MR imaging and multimodal therapy. Results: We found differences between EBL and EP regarding age at diagnosis, MR signal intensity, tumor margin and surrounding edema, presence and size of cysts, and contrast enhancement pattern. Although MRI appearance of EBL shares many features with CNS-PNET NOS, we revealed significant differences in terms of age at diagnosis, tumor volume and localization, tumor margins, edema, and contrast enhancement. Conclusion: We systematically analyze and compare MRI characteristics of pediatric EBL with EP and CNS-PNET NOS in a series of 22 centrally reviewed cases of each group. A definite differentiation of these entities with MRI seems to be difficult; however, we identify particular imaging features that might help distinguishing these histologically distinct tumor types.
ISSN:1869-1439