Pineal astrocytoma: report of a case, confined to the epiphysis, with immunocytochemical and electron microscopic studies.

A low-grade astrocytoma confined to the pineal gland is reported. The neoplasm was incidentally found at autopsy in a 39-year-old white female with no neurologic symptoms. The astrocytic origin of the neoplasm has been confirmed with electron microscopic studies and with peroxidase-antiperoxidase immunostaining, using an antiserum raised against the glial fibrillary acidic (GFA) protein. This is the first published case of a well-documented astrocytoma limited to the pineal. The presence of apparently normal, GFA protein-containing cells in human pineal gland is also demonstrated for the first time.