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Chordoma: a case report
J Jallo1, D Nathan, K Bierbrauer
1Temple University School of Medicine, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19146, USA.
Background:
Chordomas are tumors of notochordal origin that account for approximately 1%-4% of all primary malignant bone tumors. The majority of patients with chordomas have a poor surgical prognosis due to extent of disease at diagnosis. These lesions have been previously classified based solely on their location.
Methods:
We describe here a case report of a posterior epidural C5-T1 chordoma that was discovered in a young patient who presented with weakness and paresthesia in all four extremities. This lesion was notable for its extraosseous and extradural characteristics.
Results:
C5-T1 laminectomy with gross total resection of the mass led to complete resolution of all symptoms. There has been no evidence of tumor recurrence to date.
Conclusions:
We propose here a new classification system for chordomas that emphasizes the difference in resectability of these lesions depending on the space they occupy and the presence or absence of an osseous connection.