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Current Oncology
Volume 16
Issue 1
10.3747/co.v16i1.308
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Current Oncology is published by MDPI from Volume 28 Issue 1 (2021). Previous articles were published by another publisher in Open Access under a CC-BY (or CC-BY-NC-ND) licence, and they are hosted by MDPI on mdpi.com as a courtesy and upon agreement with Multimed Inc..
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Article

Brain Metastasis from an Unknown Primary, or Primary Brain Tumour? A Diagnostic Dilemma

by
S. Campos
1,*,
P. Davey
1,
A. Hird
1,
B. Pressnail
2,
J. Bilbao
3,
R. I. Aviv
4,
S. Symons
4,
F. Pirouzmand
5,
E. Sinclair
1,
S. Culleton
1,
E. DeSa
1,
P. Goh
1 and
E. Chow
1,*
1
Rapid Response Radiotherapy Program, Department of Radiation Oncology, Odette Cancer Centre, Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, Toronto, ON, Canada
2
Medical Oncology, Royal Victoria Hospital, Barrie, ON, Canada
3
Department of Laboratory Pathology, Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, Toronto, ON, Canada
4
Department of Radiology, Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, Toronto, ON, Canada
5
Department of Neurosurgery, Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, Toronto, ON, Canada
*
Authors to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Curr. Oncol. 2009, 16(1), 62-66; https://doi.org/10.3747/co.v16i1.308
Submission received: 9 October 2008 / Revised: 6 November 2008 / Accepted: 10 December 2008 / Published: 1 January 2009

Abstract

Brain metastasis is increasingly common, affecting 20%–40% of cancer patients. After diagnosis, survival is usually limited to months in these patients. Treatment for brain metastasis includes whole-brain radiation therapy, surgical resection, or both. These treatments aim to slow progression of disease and to improve or maintain neurologic function and quality of life. Although less common, primary brain tumours produce symptoms that are similar to those of brain metastasis. Glioblastoma, the most common malignant tumour of the brain, has a median survival of less than 12 months. Patients are often treated with surgical resection followed by radical radiation therapy and chemotherapy. Here, we present 2 separate cases of lesions in the brain radiologically compatible with brain metastasis. In both cases, no primary cancer site had been established, and neurosurgical intervention was sought to obtain a pathologic diagnosis. Both cases were pathologically confirmed as glioblastoma. These cases demonstrate the importance of differentiation between brain metastases and primary brain tumours to ensure that the appropriate management strategy is implemented.
Keywords: brain metastasis; glioblastoma multiforme; unknown primary; whole-brain radiation therapy; WBRT brain metastasis; glioblastoma multiforme; unknown primary; whole-brain radiation therapy; WBRT

Share and Cite

MDPI and ACS Style

Campos, S.; Davey, P.; Hird, A.; Pressnail, B.; Bilbao, J.; Aviv, R.I.; Symons, S.; Pirouzmand, F.; Sinclair, E.; Culleton, S.; et al. Brain Metastasis from an Unknown Primary, or Primary Brain Tumour? A Diagnostic Dilemma. Curr. Oncol. 2009, 16, 62-66. https://doi.org/10.3747/co.v16i1.308

AMA Style

Campos S, Davey P, Hird A, Pressnail B, Bilbao J, Aviv RI, Symons S, Pirouzmand F, Sinclair E, Culleton S, et al. Brain Metastasis from an Unknown Primary, or Primary Brain Tumour? A Diagnostic Dilemma. Current Oncology. 2009; 16(1):62-66. https://doi.org/10.3747/co.v16i1.308

Chicago/Turabian Style

Campos, S., P. Davey, A. Hird, B. Pressnail, J. Bilbao, R. I. Aviv, S. Symons, F. Pirouzmand, E. Sinclair, S. Culleton, and et al. 2009. "Brain Metastasis from an Unknown Primary, or Primary Brain Tumour? A Diagnostic Dilemma" Current Oncology 16, no. 1: 62-66. https://doi.org/10.3747/co.v16i1.308

APA Style

Campos, S., Davey, P., Hird, A., Pressnail, B., Bilbao, J., Aviv, R. I., Symons, S., Pirouzmand, F., Sinclair, E., Culleton, S., DeSa, E., Goh, P., & Chow, E. (2009). Brain Metastasis from an Unknown Primary, or Primary Brain Tumour? A Diagnostic Dilemma. Current Oncology, 16(1), 62-66. https://doi.org/10.3747/co.v16i1.308

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