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Collision Tumors of the Sella: Craniopharyngioma and Silent Pituitary Adenoma Subtype 3: Case Report

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Abstract

Collision tumors of the sella turcica are rare and consist mainly of more than one type of pituitary adenoma, usually a corticotropin- and a prolactin-producing adenoma. The association of a craniopharyngioma and a pituitary adenoma is rare. Herein, we report the first case of an association between craniopharyngioma and silent pituitary adenoma subtype 3. It involved a 12-year-old boy who underwent a frontal craniotomy with surgical removal of a calcified sellar tumor. Histology revealed an adamantinomatous craniopharyngioma; however, by electron microscopy, there was conclusive evidence of adenoma cells showing the ultrastructural features of silent pituitary adenoma subtype 3. Endocrine and neuroimaging as well as detailed immunohistochemical and ultrastructural studies were undertaken. The literature is also reviewed.

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Acknowledgement

Authors are grateful to the Jarislowsky Foundation and Lloyd Carr-Harris Foundation for the support, and both Mr. Fabio Rotondo, Saint Michael’s Hospital, for technical assistance and to Mrs. Denise Chase, Mayo Clinic, for her expert secretarial service.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Laboratory Medicine, St. Michael’s Hospital, University of Toronto, 30 Bond Street, 2 Cardinal Carter Wing, Toronto, ON, Canada, M5B 1W8

    Olga Moshkin, Eva Horvath & Kalman Kovacs

  2. Department of Pathology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, USA

    Bernd W. Scheithauer

  3. Division of Neurosurgery, Hospital Pablo Tobon Uribe and Clinical Medellin, Medellin, Colombia

    Luis V. Syro

  4. Pediatric Endocrinology, Hospital Pablo Tobon Uribe, Medellin, Colombia

    Alejandro Velasquez

Authors
  1. Olga Moshkin
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  2. Bernd W. Scheithauer
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  3. Luis V. Syro
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  4. Alejandro Velasquez
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  5. Eva Horvath
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  6. Kalman Kovacs
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Correspondence to Olga Moshkin.

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Moshkin, O., Scheithauer, B.W., Syro, L.V. et al. Collision Tumors of the Sella: Craniopharyngioma and Silent Pituitary Adenoma Subtype 3: Case Report. Endocr Pathol 20, 50–55 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12022-009-9065-3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12022-009-9065-3

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