Holocord ependymoma

Abstract

Intramedullary tumors affecting the entire cord from the cervicomedullary junction to the conus are termed "holocord tumors". Ependymomas are the most frequent intramedullary tumor in adults. Holocord ependymoma is an exceedingly rare condition. An extensive review of the literature revealed that only five other cases have been reported. We report the sixth case of holocord ependymoma. In this article, we present a case of holocord ependymoma in a 19-year-old girl which was totally resected in a two-stage approach. A two-staged operation is recommended for the aim of total resection for this disease. Besides, cysts are common feature of all spinal ependymomas. There was a solid mass not accompanied by a cyst a any level in our patient's tumor. To the authors' best knowledge, a pure solid mass not accompanied by a cyst has not been previously reported with holocord ependymoma cases.