Primary Skull Base Carcinoid Tumor: A Case Report

Abstract

Primary skull base carcinoid tumor is extremely rare. We report a case of a primary skull base carcinoid tumor. A 47-year-old female experienced intermittent severe headache associated with vomiting for 6 months prior to admission. A cranial computed tomography (CT) scan demonstrated an extensive central skull base tumor (70 mm in size) which invaded into the sphenoid sinus and ethmoid sinus. The patient underwent trans-sphenoid endoscopic surgery for tissue biopsy which led to the diagnosis of carcinoid tumor. Due to the difficulty of achieving complete surgical removal of the tumor, the patient was discharged with palliative treatment. She received radiotherapy with 21 x 1 Gy given in 3 weeks (1 Gy fractions per day and seven Gy fractions per week). This case report demonstrates that primary carcinoid tumors may arise in the central skull base, and therefore should be included in the differential diagnosis of central skull base tumors. No single imaging technique can provide a specific histologic diagnosis of carcinoid tumor thus biopsy is necessary. Early diagnosis and complete surgical removal of tumor is important.