title: A case of cystic meningioma mimicking an astrocytoma.
abstract: In a 25-year-old woman, suddenly complaining of irritation and soon after of paretic symptoms in the right upper limb, a CT scan showed a large cystic mass in the left parietal lobe. As cerebral angiography was not helpful, a cystic astrocytoma was suspected. After total surgical removal of the cyst, the histological examination revealed, to our surprise, a syncytial meningioma. The rate cases of similar cystic meningioma reported in the literature are reviewed and the usefulness of biopsy on every suspected cerebral neoplasm is stressed.
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001254:Astrocytoma / Q000175:diagnosis*; D001932:Brain Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis*; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008577:Meningeal Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000473:pathology; D008578:Meninges / Q000473:pathology; D008579:Meningioma / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000473:pathology; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed