Calvarial metastasis of a paraganglioma - Case report and review of the literature

BACKGROUND Metastasis of a paraganglioma (PRG) to the calvarium is very rare. In this paper, the case of a 25-year-old male with metastasis of a PRG to the front oparietal bone is described. CASE DESCRIPTION The patient presented with bulging on the left side of the head, headache, and weight loss. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) revealed a mass lesion in the left frontoparietal region that had destroyed both the external and in ternal table of the bone, extending under the skin and above the dura mater . After a frontoparietal craniotomy the tumor was removed totally. Histopat hological examination revealed the "Zellballen," which are pathognomonic fo r a PRG. Systemic examination and radiological investigation revealed no pr imary tumor source. CONCLUSION Metastasis of a PRG to the calvarium is possible; radical removal of the tu mor will provide a cure. (C) 2000 by Elsevier Science Inc.