Türk Nöroşirürji Dergisi 2021 , Vol 31 , Num 1
Intramedullary Spinal Cord Tumors and Management of the Surgical Treatment
Ahmet KARKUCAK1,Vaner KÖKSAL1
1Sağlık Bilimleri Üniversitesi, Samsun Eğitim ve Araştırma Hastanesi, Beyin ve Sinir Cerrahisi Kliniği, Samsun, Türkiye Intramedullary spinal cord tumors (IMSCTs) are rare neoplasms of the central nervous system (CNS) and have been a significant clinical challenge due to the limited surgical treatment options. IMSCTs account for 2?4% of all CNS tumors. Ependymomas and astrocytomas are the most commonly encountered intramedullary spinal cord tumors, with ependymoma being the most common in adults, and astrocytomas followed by hemangioblastomas being the most common in children and adolescent. Other entities include lipomas, germ cell tumors, gangliogliomas, germinomas, lymphomas, and metastases. These lesions arise from the spinal cord tissue, leading to invasion and destruction of the gray and white matter. The majority of patients with these tumors can be initially treated with an attempted resection. Unfortunately, those patients who cannot undergo gross-total resection or have subtotal resection are left with few treatment options, such as radiotherapy and chemotherapy. These reasons,other future investigations will hopefully lead to promising new therapies for these devastating diseases. Anahtar Kelimeler : Intramedullary spinal cord tumors, Resection, Astrocytomas, Ependymoma