Recurrent intracranial solitary fibrous tumor initially diagnosed as hemangiopericytoma.

We describe a case of an intracranial solitary fibrous tumor that recurred three times consecutively in an 11-year period. A 72-year-old man presented with a headache and gait disturbance. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) revealed a dumbbell tumor at the left tentorium. The tumor was removed but recurred. The first diagnosis was hemangiopericytoma, but all specimens showed a "patternless pattern" and few reticulin fibers, which features were not compatible with hemangiopericytoma. All tumors showed immunoreactivity for CD34 and bcl-2. These results point to a solitary fibrous tumor (SFT) and not to hemangiopericytoma. We present here a hypercellular spindle-cell tumor that was very similar to hemangiopericytoma but is better diagnosed as SFT.