A Pineal Germinoma with Rapid Enlargement following Tumor Resection

Abstract

The natural course of pineal germ cell tumors (GCTs), particularly their post-operative progression, is not well understood. We report a rare case of pineal region GCT showing rapid enlargement within 2 weeks following surgical resection. A young adult male presented with progressive headache and diplopia for several weeks. Although elevation of β-human chorionic gonadotropin (β-HCG) and α-fetoprotein (AFP) levels suggested that a large pineal mass lesion observed on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) might be a β-HCG/AFP-producing tumor, whether the mass was truly a GCT remained unclear. We performed an endoscopy-assisted suboccipital infratentorial approach with removal of the tumor that was diagnosed as germinoma via histopathological investigation. During the week preceding chemotherapy, the patient’s consciousness rapidly worsened. MRI showed that the residual pineal germinoma had enlarged and even compressed the tectum and thalamus. Emergency chemotherapy and radiotherapy were prescribed, and the patient received invasive ventilation for respiratory failure. Unexpectedly, the patient recovered within a short period. Importantly, total regression of the pineal germinoma, accompanied by β-HCG and AFP levels returning to normal range, was observed 4 months after chemotherapy. These phenomena suggest that the rapid enlargement of the pineal germinoma, which might be induced by aggressive surgical cytoreduction, responds well to chemoradiotherapy.