Oligodendroglioma of the "widespread" type in the spinal cord

The authors present clinical, radiological, and pathological features of the "widespread" type of primary spinal oligodendroglioma arising in a 12-year-old boy. The initial symptoms were gait disturbance, hypesthesia of the lower trunk, and scoliosis. Gadolinium-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging revealed an intramedullary tumor with syringomyelia. The tumor spread rapidly in a "widespread" pattern within the spinal cord between C7 and T12. One year after surgery the patient had made a poor neurological recovery despite the two-stage tumor resection. Only five cases of widespread tumors, including our case, have been described with discussion of their clinical manifestations.