Premium
Papillary tumor of the spinal cord. Report of two cases
Author(s) -
Mobley Bret,
Vogel Hannes
Publication year - 2008
Publication title -
the faseb journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.709
H-Index - 277
eISSN - 1530-6860
pISSN - 0892-6638
DOI - 10.1096/fasebj.22.1_supplement.706.17
Subject(s) - pathology , spinal cord , ependymoma , papillary tumor , anatomy , cytokeratin , histology , immunohistochemistry , medicine , cytoarchitecture , cuboidal cell , biology , psychiatry
Tumors perhaps related to ependymoma include astroblastoma and papillary tumor of the pineal region (PTPR). We report two cases of spinal tumors with similar distinctive features. A 14‐year‐old female had a thoracic tumor in 2001, a lumbar recurrence in 2004, 2 cerebellar lesions in 2006, and in the temporal lobe in 2007, all with identical histology. A 22‐year‐old male presented at age 17 in 1999 with a cervical spine intramedullary tumor that recurred in 2002, 2005, and 2007. A 4th ventricular mass was identified in 2003. The 2003, 2005, and 2007 specimens showed similar histologic features. The tumors showed variable gadolinium enhancement by MRI. Microscopy showed papillary and solid cytoarchitecture with monomorphous epithelioid cells arranged around vascular papillae. IHC revealed: focal GFAP positivity in the 1st case and absence in the 2nd; strong diffuse cytoplasmic EMA positivity; and diffuse cytokeratin AE1/CAM5.2 expression. EM of the 2nd case demonstrated cytoplasmic lumina lined by microvilli, cilia at extracellular surfaces, tight junctions, and absence of interdigitating cell processes. These tumors may be most closely related to ependymomas, but share similarities with the PTPR, and may therefore represent a comparable entity of the spinal cord with a predilection for local recurrence or remote spread within the CNS.