[Gliosarcoma of cerebral hemispheres: a clinicopathologic study of 10 cases].

OBJECTIVE

To study the clinical and pathologic features of gliosarcoma of cerebral hemispheres.

METHODS

The clinicopathologic features of 10 cases of gliosarcoma involving cerebral hemispheres were reviewed. Immunohistochemical study was carried out using EnVision method.

RESULTS

The mean age of the patients was 54 years and the male-to-female ratio was 6 to 4. Clinical symptoms included headache (6/10), nausea/vomiting (5/10), and sensory or motor impairment (4/10). Nine of the cases were primary gliosarcoma, with maximum diameter ranging from 2.4 to 5.5 cm (mean = 4.2 cm). The remaining case represented secondary gliosarcoma involving skull base and extracranial tissues. Histologic examination showed a biphasic pattern in all cases. Regarding the glial component, there were 9 cases of pleomorphic glioblastoma and 1 case of giant cell glioblastoma. Reticulin stain was positive in all cases. Immunohistochemical study showed that the tumor cells variably expressed GFAP (10/10), p16 (4/10), EGFR (1/10), CD68 (1/10) and p53 (6/10). The Ki-67 index ranged from 15% to 70% (mean = 34%). Six patients had follow-up data available. One patient was disease-free for 45 months and 5 patients died of the disease at 3 to 17 months after the operation (mean duration of survival = 9 months).

CONCLUSIONS

Gliosarcoma is a highly aggressive tumor, often locates in the deeper part cerebral hemispheres and has a relatively short duration of symptoms. It carries a poor prognosis. GFAP immunostain and reticulin stain are helpful in confirming the diagnosis. p53 and p16 are also expressed in some cases.