Ectopic recurrence of a craniopharyngioma in a 15-year-old girl 9 years after surgery and conventional radiotherapy: case report

This 15-year-old girl was operated due to an ectopic recurrence of a craniopharyngioma along the previous surgical route. She presented with a sellar craniopharyngioma at the age of 4 years and underwent a right subfrontal craniotomy. Two and a half years later she had a local recurrence in the sella that was resected along the same surgical route. Postoperative cranial radiotherapy was administered with 50 Gy divided into 28 fractions. Nine years later, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) revealed a local recurrence within the sella together with a supraorbital cystic mass. Both tumors were surgically removed. Microscopic examination revealed recurrence of an adamantinous craniopharyngioma at both localisations. Histopathological preparations showed a higher MIB-1 index at the simultaneous recurrences in the sella and in the frontal lobe and also an elevated focal p53 expression, compared to previous operations, suggesting a transformation to a more aggressive tumor. This is the first case report of ectopic recurrence in a child that had received conventional radiotherapy of 50 Gy to the sella. Careful intra-operative procedure is probably crucial for preventing ectopic recurrences. The future will reveal if the transsphenoidal surgical route will put an end to ectopic tumor recurrence in patients with a craniopharyngioma.