“Anemone’ Cell (Villiform) Tumor of the Brain

Abstract

At age 31, the patient developed hydrocephalus secondary to a brain lesion that had been present for 12 years. A ventriculoperitoneal shunt was performed, but a stereotactic biopsy did not establish a definitive diagnosis at that time. At age 34 the patient experienced spontaneous intratumoral and ventricular hemorrhage, which prompted radical surgical resection of the lesion. Histologic and im-munocytochemical findings established a diagnosis of ependymoma; review of the ultrastructure of the tumor from the biopsy performed when the patient was 31 years old revealed the characteristics of an “anemone” cell neoplasm.

Key Words:

• brain tumor
• ependymoma
• electron microscopy
• immunohistochemistry