Fatal intracranial haemorrhage – a rare lethal acute complication of cerebral meningioma

Abstract

Haemorrhage is a serious intracranial tumour complication, more commonly seen in aggressive cerebral neoplasia and seldom reported in more benign counterparts. Meningioma, the most common primary tumour in the cranial vault, is often benign (World Health Organization Grade 1) and usually does not cause any specific clinical symptoms and rarely bleeds. Patients with meningioma usually present with vague, non-localising symptoms that are associated with compression of the adjacent brain parenchyma. We report a rare fatal complication of meningioma, namely tumour haemorrhage, in a patient with disseminated intravascular coagulation. This case documents a potentially lethal acute complication from a tumour that is otherwise considered to be benign. A brief literature review on risk factors for tumour haemorrhage, specific to meningioma, is also included.