Craniopharyngioma arising in the pharyngeal hypophysis

Four cases of nasopharyngeal craniopharyngiomas have been previously reported in the medical literature. They were, in fact, only nasopharyngeal extensions of tumors originating in the anterior pituitary of the sella turcica. Pituitary adenomas can arise from any part of the craniopharyngeal canal. Supporting this theory are four reported cases of pituitary adenomas in the body of the sphenoid bone separate from both the sella turcica and the nasopharynx. The discovery by Erdheim in 1904 of the pharyngeal hypophysis located on the posterior edge of the vomerine bone raises the possibility of a tumor arising in this tissue. We report the case of a craniopharyngioma limited entirely to the nasopharynx and specifically to the posterior end of the vomer. We believe it to be the only reported example of a true neoplasm of the pharyngeal hypophysis first described by Erdheim.