Kosty Jennifer A, Andaluz Norberto
Department of Neurosurgery, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, Brain Tumor Center at the University of Cincinnati Neuroscience Institute; and Mayfield Clinic, Cincinnati, Ohio, USA.
Department of Neurosurgery, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, Brain Tumor Center at the University of Cincinnati Neuroscience Institute; and Mayfield Clinic, Cincinnati, Ohio, USA.
World Neurosurg. 2016 Sep;93:486.e1-6. doi: 10.1016/j.wneu.2016.07.001. Epub 2016 Jul 12.
Thymic epithelial tumors (TETs) are uncommon lesions, and cerebral metastases from these tumors are even rarer. We report a case of a posterior fossa metastasis in a patient with a known history of thymic carcinoma.
A 47-year-old man with a history of Hodgkin lymphoma and thymic carcinoma presented with headache, nausea, and ataxia. Imaging revealed a large posterior fossa mass. This lesion was completely resected without complications. Pathologic examination was consistent with metastatic thymic carcinoma. The patient's symptoms were relieved postoperatively. We reviewed the literature and identified an additional 44 cases of TETs with metastases to the brain. Although brain metastases are generally associated with a poor prognosis in patients with TETs, survival of more than 1 year may be accomplished with surgical resection and multimodality treatment.
Metastasis should be considered in the differential of a patient with a TET and an intracranial mass lesion.
胸腺上皮肿瘤（TETs）是罕见的病变，这些肿瘤的脑转移更为罕见。我们报告一例已知有胸腺癌病史患者发生后颅窝转移的病例。
一名有霍奇金淋巴瘤和胸腺癌病史的47岁男性，出现头痛、恶心和共济失调。影像学检查发现一个巨大的后颅窝肿块。该病变被完整切除，无并发症。病理检查结果与转移性胸腺癌一致。患者术后症状缓解。我们查阅了文献，又发现另外44例TETs发生脑转移的病例。虽然脑转移在TETs患者中通常与预后不良相关，但通过手术切除和多模式治疗，患者有可能存活超过1年。
对于患有TET且有颅内占位性病变的患者，鉴别诊断时应考虑转移的可能性。
