Abstract
Background: Chordoid glioma is a rare variant of glioma, so named by Brat et al in 1998.
We encountered a 42-year-oldwoman with a confirmed diagnosis of chordoid glioma. We report on the cytologic and histopathological findings in this case.
Case: A 42-year-old woman with a one-year history of amenorrhea and memory impairment complained of short spells of unconsciousness. Due to progression of the symptom, CT and MRI were performed. CT revealed a wellcircumscribed, hyperdense mass occupying the third ventricle, with, homogeneous contrast enhancement. The tumor was 3.5 cm in diameter.
Cytologically, the tumor cells were comparatively uniform, and distributed in a scattered manner. The nuclei of the tumor cells were oval and eccentric and their cytoplasm was abundant.
Histologically, the tumor consisted of epithelioid cells arranged in irregular cords and clusters with abundant eosinophilic cytoplasm. The stroma consisted of a prominent, slightly basophilic and mucinous material. Nuclei were large in size, round-to-oval, and relatively uniform. Although these histologic findings mimicked those of a chordoma, positive immunostaining of individual cells for glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) and vimentin, and negative staining for S-100 protein led to the diagnosis of chordoid glioma.
Conclusion: For a cytologic differential diagnosis of the various tumors of the third ventricle, the cytologist must be aware of the cytologic features of a chordoid glioma.
