Gaucher's disease and glioblastoma multiforme in two siblings: a clinicopathologic study

The clinical and pathologic features of two brothers with the adult form of Gaucher's disease, both of whom developed cerebral glioblastoma multiforme, are presented. Neither patient had a long-standing neurologic disorder, and morphologic evidence of nervous system glucocerebroside storage was not seen. Despite the known increased incidence of malignancy in Gaucher's disease, a review of the literature and of sixty-two Mayo Clinic cases of adult onset Gaucher's disease revealed only one other instance of the association with glioma. The significance of the relationship is unknown.

[Glioblastoma multiforme developing after a gunshot injury of the brain (author's transl)]

We report the case of a 28-year-old male who suffered a frontal penetrating gunshot injury with subsequent bifrontal brain abscess and subdural empyema, and five years later developed a large bifrontal tumour at the precise site of the meningo-cerebral scar and posttraumatic defect. Histological examination showed a glioblastoma multiforme adjacent to the dural scar and, in addition, old suture material was found within the glioma tissue. In spite of combined radiation and polychemotherapy the patient died eleven months after partial tumour resection. The temporal and local association of missile injury with subsequent recurred abscess and scar formation and the malignant glioma is highly suggestive of a causal relationship between trauma and the development of a brain tumour.

Cerebral space-occupying cysts following radiation and chemotherapy of malignant gliomas

Eight cases of cerebral cyst formation among 50 patients (= 16%) with malignant supratentorial gliomas treated by surgery, megavoltage radiation, and multiple-agent chemotherapy are reported. Five of them developed signs of intracranial hypertension or progressive neurological deficit, while in three patients cerebral cysts were detected by CT without clinical deterioration. At operation or autopsy, or both, the large fluid-filled, smooth-walled cysts were lined by glio-mesenchymal scar tissue with no or little tumour recurrence in five, while three patients showed large recurrent tumour masses associated with necrosis and cyst formation. Clinical signs or CT evidence, or both, of cerebral cysts developed 4 to 12 months (average 10 months) after the first craniotomy, and 3 to 9 months after termination of radiotherapy, usually after the second to fourth course of polychemotherapy. The cystic cavities which are attributed to increased necrosis and other effects of radiation and cytostatic treatment, may mimic tumour progression or recurrence, and cerebral abscess, but are usually recognized by CT. Surgical treatment produced transient clinical improvement in 5 patients, but usually did not prevent the fatal outcome of the disease, which in these paticrosis and other effects of radiation and cytostatic treatment, may mimic tumour progression or recurrence, and cerebral abscess, but are usually recognized by CT. Surgical treatment produced transient clinical improvement in 5 patients, but usually did not prevent the fatal outcome of the disease, which in these paticrosis and other effects of radiation and cytostatic treatment, may mimic tumour progression or recurrence, and cerebral abscess, but are usually recognized by CT. Surgical treatment produced transient clinical improvement in 5 patients, but usually did not prevent the fatal outcome of the disease, which in these patients occurred 3 weeks to 6 months after surgical treatment of cyst formation, their life span ranging from 9 to 22 months. The pathogenesis and clinical problems related to cerebral cysts arising following multimodality treatment of malignant brain tumours are discussed.

Multiple primary brain tumors of different cell types

Eighteen cases of multiple primary brain tumors of different histological types were found in a review of Mayo Clinic records from 1950 to 1978. The predisposing factors, clinical presentation, location, and type of tumor are discussed. The clinical significance and etiology of these multiple tumors are considered.

Glioblastoma multiforme occurring 13 years after treatment of a medulloblastoma

Although medulloblastoma is said to be capable of astrocytic differentiation, the development of an astrocytic neoplasm in association with a medulloblastoma is extremely rare. We report the light and electron microscopic features of a supratentorial glioblastoma that occurred 13 years after radiation therapy for a cerebellar medulloblastoma. The diverse ultrastructural features of the glioblastoma may reflect the multipotentiality of the cells in medulloblastoma. An alternate interpretation is that the glioblastoma represents a radiation-induced neoplasm after therapy for a medulloblastoma.

Superficial temporal-middle cerebral artery anastomosis associated with glioblastoma multiforme

The authors report a case in which glioblastoma multiforme was intimately associated with a surgical anastomosis of the superficial temporal artery to a branch of the middle cerebral artery.

Concurrence of multiple sclerosis and glioma

Three cases are reported of concurrence of malignant gliomas (astrocytomas and glioblastomas) with multiple sclerosis (MS). This situation may lead to considerable diagnostic difficulties, yet an accurate appraisal is of prognostic, if not therapeutic, value. There is suggestive but inconclusive evidence that the two conditions may be causally related, malignant astrocytic tumours arising from plaques of MS. The small number of reported cases makes statistical analysis impossible, but the scanty literature may not reflect the true incidence.

Human papovavirus (JC): induction of brain tumors in hamsters

Eighty-three percent of hamsters inoculated at birth with JC virus, a human papovavirus isolated from brain tissue of a case of progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy, developed malignant gliomas within 6 months. Three brain tumors have been serially transplanted as subcutaneous tumors. JC virus was isolated from five of seven tumors tested. Cells from four tumors were cultivated in vitro. These cells contained an intranuclear antigen with the characteristics of a T antigen, and this antigen was antigenically related to SV40 T antigen. Although virus was not recovered from extracts of serially cultured tumor cells, JC virus was rescued when one tumor cell line was fused with permissive cells.

Multiple cerebral gliomas in multiple sclerosis

A patient with multiple sclerosis and a multicentric anaplastic astrocytoma is described. The evidence suggests that the relationship is not coincidental and that the astrocytomas originate in multiple sclerosis plaques.