Early imaging findings in germ cell tumors arising from the basal ganglia

So Mi Lee, In One Kim, Young Hun Choi, Jung Eun Cheon, Woo Sun Kim, Hyun Hae Cho, Sun Kyoung You

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

9 Scopus citations

Abstract

Background: It is difficult to diagnosis early stage germ cell tumors originating in the basal ganglia, but early recognition is important for better outcome. Objective: To evaluate serial MR images of basal ganglia germ cell tumors, with emphasis on the features of early stage tumors. Materials and methods: We retrospectively reviewed serial MR images of 15 tumors in 14 children and young adults. We categorized MR images of the tumors as follows: type I, ill-defined patchy lesions (<3 cm) without cyst; type II, small mass lesions (<3 cm) with cyst; and type III, large lesions (≥3 cm) with cyst. We also assessed temporal changes of the MR images. Results: On the initial images, 8 of 11 (73%) type I tumors progressed to types II or III, and 3 of 4 (75%) type II tumors progressed to type III. The remaining 4 tumors did not change in type. All type II tumors (5/5, 100%) that changed from type I had a few tiny cysts. Intratumoral hemorrhage was observed even in the type I tumor. Ipsilateral hemiatrophy was observed in most of the tumors (13/15, 87%) on initial MR images. As tumors grew, cystic changes, intratumoral hemorrhage, and ipsilateral hemiatrophy became more apparent. Conclusion: Early stage basal ganglia germ cell tumors appear as ill-defined small patchy hyperintense lesions without cysts on T2-weighted images, are frequently associated with ipsilateral hemiatrophy, and sometimes show microhemorrhage. Tumors develop tiny cysts at a relatively early stage.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)719-726
Number of pages8
JournalPediatric Radiology
Volume46
Issue number5
DOIs
StatePublished - 1 May 2016

Bibliographical note

Publisher Copyright:
© 2016, Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg.

Keywords

  • Adolescent
  • Basal ganglia
  • Child
  • Early stage
  • Germ cell tumor
  • Magnetic resonance imaging
  • Serial images

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