are spinal ependymomas malignant?
Ependymomas can form in any of the ventricles in the brain or spinal cord, but most ependymomas arise in the fourth ventricle and affect the cerebellum and the brain stem. Ependymomas account for 5 to 10 percent of pediatric brain tumors and occur equally in boys and girls. How Dana-Farber/Boston Children's Approaches Ependymoma Treatment. Children with ependymomas are treated at Dana-Farber/Boston Children's through the Brain Tumor Center, a world-renowned destination for children with malignant and non-malignant brain and spinal cord tumors. Ependymomas arise from the ependymal cells that line the ventricles of the brain and the center of the spinal cord. These tumors are divided into four major types: Subependymomas (grade I): Typically slow-growing tumors. Myxopapillary ependymomas (grade I): Typically slow-growing tumors. Ependymomas are glial tumors that arise from ependymal cells within the CNS (see the image below). CT scan without contrast. Fourth ventricle ependymoma. The World Health Organization (WHO) divides them into 4 types on the basis of histologic appearance: WHO grade I: Myxopapillary ependymoma, subependymoma. Benign: A benign tumor is not cancerous and will not spread to other parts of the body. Examples of spinal tumors that are usually benign include neurofibromas, schwannomas, meningiomas, ependymomas, astrocytomas, hemangioblastomas, osteosarcomas, and osteoid osteomas. Malignant: A malignant tumor is cancerous. It will destroy nearby tissue and spread to other parts of the body. Malignant spinal tumors include chordoma, Ewing sarcoma, and occasional tumors of the types mentioned above. Aggressive: An aggressive tumor grows or (in the case of malignant tumors) spreads quickly. Ependymomas are tumors that grow in the ependyma, the cells that line passageways in the brain where protective brain and spinal cord fluid (cerebrospinal fluid) is created. The cause of ependymomas is not known, but they make up about six percent of brain tumors and about 60 percent of spinal cord tumors. Ependymomas are tumors that grow in the ependyma, the cells that line passageways in the brain where protective brain and spinal cord fluid (cerebrospinal fluid) is created. Causes. The cause of ependymomas is not known, but they make up about six percent of brain tumors and about 60 percent of spinal cord tumors. While the average age of diagnosis is 22 years old, they also occur in children around age 5 and adults around age 34. Ependymoma is a tumor that arises from the ependyma, a tissue of the central nervous system. Usually, in pediatric cases the location is intracranial, while in adults it is spinal. The common location of intracranial ependymoma is the fourth ventricle. Rarely, ependymoma can occur in the pelvic cavity. Syringomyelia can be caused by an ependymoma. Ependymomas are also seen with neurofibromatosis type II. The various types of ependymomas appear in different locations within the brain and spinal column. Subependymomas usually appear near a ventricle. Myxopapillary ependymomas tend to occur in the lower part of the spinal column. Ependymomas are usually located along, within, or next to the ventricular system. Physical findings with cervical or thoracic ependymomas may include the following: 1  Spinal tumors in the upper cervical cord: Occipital or cervical pain or paresthesia, neck stiffness, and weakness and wasting of neck muscles. 2  Spastic tetraplegia or hemiplegia and weakness ventrolaterally below the lesion.
Yes, Children with ependymomas are treated at Dana-Farber/Boston Children's through the Brain Tumor Center, a world-renowned destination for children with malignant and non-malignant brain and spinal cord tumors.