Senile tanycytic ependymoma of the spinal cord: a case report and literature review

Tanycytic ependymoma is a rare subtype of ependymoma that most commonly occurs in the brain. Senile tanycytic ependymoma that arises from the spinal cord is extremely rare. The present study reported the case of a 65-year-old woman who presented with a 4-day history of numbness in both lower limbs accompanied by an increased urinary frequency and constipation. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of the lumbar vertebrae indicated an oval intradural mass at the level of the second lumbar vertebra, which exhibited an equal intensity on the T1weighted image (T1WI) and a slightly increased intensity on the T2-weighted image (T2WI). A complete resection of the tumor was performed. A histopathological examination indicated that the tumor cells were elongated, bipolar and spindle-shaped with different densities and formed a palisade arrangement that varied in width. The cells were immuno positive for GFAP and S-100 protein, as well as weakly positive for Syn. Furthermore, we reviewed 55 cases of tanycytic ependymoma indexed in PubMed since 1978. We determined that the patients with tanycytic ependymomas in the spinal cord were predominantly female and older than the individuals with tumors in the brain. Tanycytic ependymomas in the brain and spinal cord had a similar appearance via MRI and pathology examinations.