Metastatic Meningioma of the Neck: A Case Report and Systematic Review

Although meningiomas are the most common central nervous system neoplasms, extracranial metastases are exceedingly rare. There are even fewer reports of metastatic meningiomas to the neck.

We described a patient with multiply recurrent orbital meningioma with metastasis to the neck found incidentally during neck exploration for composite resection and free tissue reconstruction. We performed a systematic review for all records pertaining to metastatic meningiomas to the cervical regions.

We found 9 previous reports of cervical metastatic meningiomas. Almost all cases underwent extensive local resection. There was no evidence of an association between the histological grade of the tumor and risk of metastasis to the neck. Cervical lymph node dissemination is more common in patients presenting after previous primary tumor resection.

In the context of a neck mass, our findings suggest that metastatic meningioma should be included in the differential diagnosis, especially in patients with previous resections.