Prenatal diagnosis of fetal glioblastoma multiforme

Abstract

Intracerebral tumours of the fetus are very rare conditions, most often presenting clinically as polyhydramnios and hydrocephalus. These conditions can be diagnosed with ultrasound and clearly differentiated from hydrocephalus and other intracranial lesions. The following report is of a case of an intracerebral tumour (glioblastoma multiforme) diagnosed at 33 weeks in utero using ultrasound. The prognosis for this condition is universally poor.

Congenital glioblastoma multiforme: prenatal diagnosis on the basis of sonography and magnetic resonance imaging.

“…Polyhydramnios may be present, presumably secondary to difficulty swallowing. 4,13 Our case is unusual compared with prior reports in that instead of a single echogenic lesion, there were multifocal areas of increased echogenicity. To our knowledge the pronounced color flow appearance on sonography has not been described in other reported cases.…”

Fetal intraventricular glioblastoma: ultrasonographic, magnetic resonance imaging, and pathologic findings

“…:Hi Most of the congenital intracranial tumors reported in the literature have been diagnosed in the third trimester: three of four teratomas after 28 weeks' gestation2 and five of five cases of glioblastomas after 30 weeks' gestation.3. 6 As in our case, four of five prenatally diagnosed glioblastomas A review of the five previously published cases of fetal glioblastomas showed quite uniform ultrasonographic findings: a large homogeneous hyperechoic mass involving the supratentorial cerebral parenchyma, except for one case in which a hypoechoic component was described within the lesion.u Mass effect and hydrocephalus were present in all cases. Our case had a lesion in a purely intraventricular location.…”

Fetal Glioblastoma: Rapid Growth during the Third Trimester

“…The other clinical sign is hydramnios [2,4,5], which is probably caused by decreased fetal swallowing due to hypothalamic dysfunction [6]. In this case, however, biophysical parameters, including amniotic fluid volume, were normal.…”

“…Most of the fetal intracranial tumors are diagnosed with a large head [1][2][3][4][5]. The other clinical sign is hydramnios [2,4,5], which is probably caused by decreased fetal swallowing due to hypothalamic dysfunction [6].…”

“…These are all well documented [1][2][3][4][5]. It is not known, however, how rapid these tumors grow in utero.…”