METACHRONOUS NEUROHYPOPHYSEAL GERMINOMA OCCURRING 8 YEARS AFTER TOTALRESECTION OF PINEAL MATURE TERATOMA

BACKGROUND Metachronous germ cell tumor in the central nervous system is extremely rare. To our knowledge, only one patient presenting conce ivable metachronous intracranial germ cell tumor has been reported. CA SE REPORT A neurohypophyseal germinoma occurring 8 years after total r esection of a pineal mature teratoma is presented. The patient underwe nt total resection of a large pineal mass in 1987. Histologic investig ation revealed a mature teratoma without any immature or germinomatous components. In 1995, he developed diabetes insipidus. Magnetic resona nce imaging depicted an intrasellar mass extending to the floor of the third ventricle. A transsphenoidal biopsy revealed histologically pur e germinoma. CONCLUSION The second neurohypophyseal germinoma was cons idered to be a de novo metachronous neoplasm rather than a recurrence of the original mature teratoma. (C) 1998 by Elsevier Science Inc.