Primary intramedullary spinal cord germinoma: case report

We describe an 18-year-old male with an intramedullary spinal cord germinoma in whom the diagnosis was made two years after onset of a progressive myelopathy. Spinal cord germinomas are rare, most having been described in young Japanese adults. They often respond well to radiotherapy. A unique featu...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of neuro-oncology 2003-05, Vol.63 (1), p.69-73
Main Authors: CHUTE, Dennis J, BURTON, Eric C, KLEMENT, Ivan A, FRAZEE, John G, VINTERS, Harry V
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adolescent
Biological and medical sciences
Combined Modality Therapy
Germinoma - diagnosis
Germinoma - pathology
Germinoma - therapy
Humans
Magnetic Resonance Imaging
Male
Medical sciences
Neurology
Spinal Cord - pathology
Spinal Cord Neoplasms - diagnosis
Spinal Cord Neoplasms - pathology
Spinal Cord Neoplasms - therapy
Tumors of the nervous system. Phacomatoses
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Description
Summary:We describe an 18-year-old male with an intramedullary spinal cord germinoma in whom the diagnosis was made two years after onset of a progressive myelopathy. Spinal cord germinomas are rare, most having been described in young Japanese adults. They often respond well to radiotherapy. A unique feature of this case was the prolonged time interval between onset of the patient's symptoms and ability to visualize the mass radiographically. A further interesting finding was the infiltrative nature of the tumor surrounding residual spinal cord neurons.
ISSN:0167-594X
1573-7373
DOI:10.1023/A:1023789806797