Imaging Neurologic Manifestations of Oncologic Disease

Brain metastases are the most common cause of malignant brain tumors in adults. Lung and breast cancers are the most common tumors that metastasize to brain, with melanoma, renal, and colorectal cancers accounting for the majority of the remaining metastases [1]. Among human cancers, melanoma has the highest propensity to metastasize to the brain [2]. The relative anatomical distribution of metastases in brain is associated with regional blood perfusion, with 80% of metastases found in supratentorial compartment, 15% in the cerebellum, and 5% in brainstem [3]. Metastatic tumors can involve either intra-axial or extra-axial compartments, or both.