Hemangiopericytoma of the sella mimicking pituitary adenoma: case report and review of the literature.
OBJECTIVE
Hemangiopericytoma (HPC) is a potentially malignant vascular neoplasm that in rare cases presents as a primary intracranial lesion, where most often it is meningeal in origin. Hemangiopericytoma arising within the sella turcica is an even more sporadic event. To our knowledge, only 9 cases of HPC presenting as a sellar or suprasellar mass have been reported in the literature. Often, these cases can mimic and be mistaken for a pituitary adenoma.


METHODS
We report a case of an 18-year-old woman presenting with a sellar mass which was thought both clinically and radiologically to be a pituitary adenoma.


RESULTS
Based on histologic, immunohistochemical and electron-microscopic studies, the diagnosis of sellar HPC was made.


CONCLUSIONS
Hemangiopericytoma should be considered in the differential diagnosis of sellar or suprasellar masses.
Juco
J
J
Department of Laboratory Medicine, St. Michael's Hospital, University of Toronto, 30 Bond Street, Toronto, Ontario, Canada. jucoj@smh.toronto.on.ca
Horvath
E
E
Smyth
H
H
Rotondo
F
F
Kovacs
K
K
D000236:Adenoma / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000473:pathology; D000293:Adolescent; D001859:Bone Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000473:pathology; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D005260:Female; D006393:Hemangiopericytoma / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000473:pathology; D006801:Humans; D010911:Pituitary Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000473:pathology; D012658:Sella Turcica / Q000473:pathology*