Intramedullary Spinal Cord Germinoma – A Case Report and Review of Literature

Abstract Primary spinal cord germinomas are an extremely rare group of tumors, most commonly reported as single cases in young Japanese adults. They usually present as intramedullary lesions located in the thoracic and thoracolumbar spine. The importance of preoperative diagnosis lies in the fact that by using radiotherapy and chemotherapy, even without surgery, a good cure rate can be achieved in patients with spinal cord germinoma. However, these tumors demonstrate unspecific imaging characteristics and only some secrete tumor markers. Therefore, a diagnosis of these lesions before biopsy or resection with pathohistological examination can be difficult. We present a case of a 28-year-old Caucasian man with intramedullary spinal cord germinoma. The tumor was completely resected with electrophysiological monitoring, without a biopsy and frozen section analysis. Postoperative radiotherapy was also part of the treatment. The patient has had no relapse four and a half years after diagnosis; however, significant neurological deficits remain. Although not as frequent in Caucasians, germinoma should be considered as differential diagnosis in cases of young adult patients with intramedullary tumor in the thoracic or thoracolumbar spine. Therefore, spinal mass surgery should commence with a biopsy and intraoperative frozen section analysis. In this way, attempting a gross total resection becomes unnecessary. With an approach of intraoperative biopsy and frozen section analysis, a considerable amount of postoperative neurologic deficits can be reduced.