High uptake on 11C-methionine positron emission tomographic scan of basal ganglia germinoma with cerebral hemiatrophy.
We herein describe a 12-year-old male patient with a germinoma of the basal ganglia who presented with progressive hemiparesis. MR imaging showed ipsilateral cerebral hemiatrophy predominantly in the left basal ganglia, whereas no mass or enhancement was depicted. Single photon emission CT revealed no significant uptake of thallium, whereas (11)C-methionine positron emission tomography showed clearly discernible uptake in the left putamen. Stereotactic biopsy, referencing the results of (11)C-methionine positron emission tomography, was performed, allowing histologic verification of germinoma to be established. (11)C-methionine positron emission tomography was the only technique that indicated the precise localization of the tumor in our patient and enabled biopsy-based final diagnosis of the basal ganglia germinoma without any overt mass formation.
Sudo
Akira
A
Department of Pediatrics, Hokkaido University Graduate School of Medicine, Sapporo, Japan.
Shiga
Tohru
T
Okajima
Maki
M
Takano
Kyoko
K
Terae
Satoshi
S
Sawamura
Yutaka
Y
Ohnishi
Akiko
A
Nagashima
Kazuo
K
Saitoh
Shinji
S
D001284:Atrophy; D001479:Basal Ganglia / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D001921:Brain / Q000473:pathology; D001932:Brain Neoplasms / Q000150:complications / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D002250:Carbon Radioisotopes; D002648:Child; D018237:Germinoma / Q000150:complications / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D008715:Methionine; D010291:Paresis / Q000209:etiology; D019275:Radiopharmaceuticals; D014055:Tomography, Emission-Computed; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed
D002250:Carbon Radioisotopes; D019275:Radiopharmaceuticals; C086242:carbon-11 methionine; D008715:Methionine