title: Malignant transformation of craniopharyngioma with detailed follow-up.
abstract: A 29-year-old male patient was admitted into hospital with the main complaint of progressive visual disturbance. Both CT SCAN and MRI demonstrated a cystic-solid contrast-enhancing sellar-suprasellar mass with obvious calcification. Histopathological examination of the first resected specimen showed a typical appearance of adamantinomatous craniopharyngioma. The patient received gamma knife therapy after his first operation because of partial tumor removal. He experienced two relapses in the subsequent 2 years, for which only surgical resection was performed. The later histopathology presented malignant appearance with tumor cells moderate to severe pleomorphism, hyperchromasia, increased nuclear cytoplastic ratio, high mitotic activity (30/10 high power fields) and focal coagulative necrosis. The patient died 9 months after identification of histologic malignancy. Clinical and histopathological features, biological behavior of one case of malignant craniopharyngioma were discussed, with a brief review of the relevant literature.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathology, Guangzhou Liuhuaqiao Hospital, Guangzhou, China.
authors.forename: Wei
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Xiao-Dong
authors.initials: XD
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Hong-Min
authors.initials: HM
authors.lastname: Bai
authors.forename: Qiu-Lin
authors.initials: QL
authors.lastname: Liao
authors.forename: Xue-Jun
authors.initials: XJ
authors.lastname: Dai
authors.forename: Da-Yun
authors.initials: DY
authors.lastname: Peng
authors.forename: Hui-Xia
authors.initials: HX
authors.lastname: Cao
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D002471:Cell Transformation, Neoplastic / Q000473:pathology*; D003397:Craniopharyngioma / Q000473:pathology*; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010911:Pituitary Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology*
keywords: craniopharyngioma; follow-up; malignant transformation; prognosis; radiotherapy