Radiation therapy as an alternative to surgery in the management of intracranial juvenile nasopharyngeal angiofibroma

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Juvenile nasopharyngeal angiofibroma is a benign, vascular tumor which typically presents in adolescent males. Although surgical resection is usually recommended for the management of this tumor, external beam radiation therapy has also been advocated in the literature. We report three cases of large juvenile nasopharyngeal angiofibromas with extensive intracranial extension primarily managed with external beam radiation therapy. Although there was not complete resolution of the tumors, there was significant alleviation of symptomatology with no serious side effects from the radiation therapy. Based on these cases, we feel that external beam radiation therapy in the management of extensive juvenile nasopharyngeal angiofibromas with intracranial extension is warranted in certain select cases.