title: An unusual anatomic and geographic location of primary germinoma of the fourth ventricle.
abstract: Intracranial germinoma is most commonly found in the pineal and suprasellar regions. The medulla oblongata and fourth ventricle are rare sites of primary germinoma, with only 12 previous patients reported, all from the Far East. To our knowledge, we report the first patient from Europe. A 25-year-old female of Afro-Caribbean origin presented with several weeks of worsening migraines, dizziness, tachycardia and veering to the right whilst walking. MRI revealed a lesion in the fourth ventricle, which was treated with surgical debulking and post operative radiotherapy. Two months following completion of radiotherapy, MRI showed almost complete resolution of the enhancing disease within the primary tumour area and no intraspinal pathological enhancement. This patient highlights the importance of considering germinoma in the differential diagnosis of all medullary masses with extension into the fourth ventricle irrespective of geographic location.
authors.affiliation: Victor Horsley Department of Neurosurgery, The National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery, Queen Square, London WC1N 3BG, UK. Electronic address: Akbar.Khan@uclh.nhs.uk.
authors.forename: Akbar A
authors.initials: AA
authors.lastname: Khan
authors.forename: Matthew A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Kirkman
authors.forename: Caroline
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Anderson
authors.forename: Zane
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Jaunmuktane
authors.forename: Robert C
authors.initials: RC
authors.lastname: Morris
authors.forename: Neil D
authors.initials: ND
authors.lastname: Kitchen
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001932:Brain Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology* / Q000532:radiotherapy / Q000601:surgery; D005260:Female; D020546:Fourth Ventricle / Q000473:pathology*; D018237:Germinoma / Q000473:pathology* / Q000532:radiotherapy / Q000601:surgery; D006801:Humans
keywords: Europe; Fourth ventricle; Germinoma; Medulla