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Rare suprasellar glioblastoma: report of two cases and review of the literature

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Abstract

Background and importance

The suprasellar and hypothalamic/chiasmatic regions can harbor a broad range of pathologic conditions, both neoplastic and nonneoplastic; however, malignant gliomas are extremely rare in those regions.

Clinical presentations

Patient 1 was a 70 year-old man with weight loss and rapidly progressive visual impairment. A mass centered in the hypothalamus was detected on magnetic resonance (MR) imaging. The second patient, a 45 year-old woman, complained of visual symptoms and headaches. MR imaging revealed a combined intra- and suprasellar mass. In both instances, the preoperative differential diagnosis favored craniopharyngioma. Histological examination confirmed the diagnosis of glioblastoma.

Conclusion

We report two rare adult cases of hypothalamic/chiasmatic glioblastoma. The authors review the literature, highlighting the importance of considering this rare entity in the differential diagnosis of suprasellar and hypothalamic lesions.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute of Neuropathology, University Hospital Zurich, Schmelzbergstrasse 12, 8091, Zurich, Switzerland

    Doreen Lemm, Francine Hehn de Oliveira, Ingeborg Fischer & Elisabeth J. Rushing

  2. Department of Neurosurgery, University Hospital Zurich, 8091, Zurich, Switzerland

    René-Ludwig Bernays & Ralf Alfons Kockro

  3. Institute of Neuroradiology, University Hospital Zurich, 8091, Zurich, Switzerland

    Spyros Kollias

Authors
  1. Doreen Lemm
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  2. Francine Hehn de Oliveira
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  3. René-Ludwig Bernays
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  4. Ralf Alfons Kockro
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  5. Spyros Kollias
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  6. Ingeborg Fischer
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  7. Elisabeth J. Rushing
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Correspondence to Doreen Lemm.

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Lemm, D., de Oliveira, F.H., Bernays, RL. et al. Rare suprasellar glioblastoma: report of two cases and review of the literature. Brain Tumor Pathol 29, 216–220 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10014-012-0086-0

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10014-012-0086-0

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