Clinical Study on Skull Metastases of Malignant Neoplasms

Abstract

A total of 631 patients with malignant neoplasms excluding leukemia and myeloma examined with bone scintigraphy during 3 years in Kure National Hospital from 1985 to 1987 and 9 skull metastases treated in our department of neurosurgery for 10 years from 1978 to 1987 were investigated in this study. One hundred and ninety-seven (31.2%) bone metastases and 39 (6.2%) skull metastases were observed in 631 cases. There was no primary site that especially tended to metastasize to skull. The primary sites of 9 treated skull metastases were breastin 3, prostate in 2, lung, uterine cervix, malignant lymphoma and liver in one respectively. Six skull metastases were in vault and 3 in cranial base. Four cases were treated by irradiation, 2 by operation only and 3 by combination with operation and irradiation. Although 8 of 9 cases had died, there were no cases who died of skull metastases. The mean survival time from the diagnosis of primary site was 27.3 months and from skull metastases was 8.1 months. Because of cases with skull metastases often have another metastases, it is necessary to give special consideration to their treatments.