Cases of the Month

Every issue of Brain Pathology features a selection of Cases of the Month – these are cases that are of greater than normal clinical interest, have unusual symptoms and/or diagnostic findings, or involve rare diseases or conditions. They are collected and edited by Ronald L Hamilton, MD, Department of Pathology at the University of Pittsburgh and the full version of the cases can be found here.

December 2016 (#2) 47 year old woman with headache, eye pain and lesion involving the cavernous sinus.
December 2016 (#1) 3 year old boy with progressive hemiparesis and thalamic tumour.
November 2016 (#2) 65 year old woman with facial pain and CP angle tumour.
November 2016 (#1) 49 year old woman with dysphagia and foramen magnum lesion.
October 2016 (#2) 64 year old man with seizure and extraaxial mass.
October 2016 (#1) 33 year old man with paraparesis and lumbar mass.
September 2016 (#2) 55 year old woman headaches and leptomeningeal pigmentation
September 2016 (#1) 78 year old woman who became unrousable following a hip hemiarthroplasty
July 2016 (#2) 49 year old man with headache, weight loss and cranial nerve disturbances
August 2016 (#2) 71 year old man with headache, visual disturbance and agraphia
August 2016 (#1) 36 year old female with facial sensory loss, headache, nausea and weight loss
July 2016 (#1) 36 year old male with pulsatile crainal mass developing after head injury
June 2016 (#2) 11 year old boy with lumbar intradural mass
June 2016 (#1) 60 year old man with lumbar mass
May 2016 (#2) 64 year old man with lumbar intradural mass
May 2016 (#1) Female in late 60’s with progressive paraplegia and sensory loss
April 2016 (#2) 32 year old man with headaches and vascular lesion in temporal region.
April 2016 (#1) 66 year old man with previous prostate cancer and sphenoid wing tumour.
March 2016 (#2) 59 year old woman with headache and retrosellar mass.
March 2016 (#1) 63 year old woman with apathy and drowsiness.
Febuary 2016 (#2) 22 year old woman with retro-orbital pain.
Febuary 2016 (#1) 74 year old woman with headache and weakness.
January 2016 (#2) 12 year old boy with progressive hemiparesis.
January 2016 (#1) 55 year old man with electrolyte disturbance and fatigue.
December 2015 (#2) 14 year old boy with headache and seizure.
December 2015 (#1) 52 year old man with somnolence, irritability and memory disturbace.
November 2015 (#2) 34 year old man with headaches, confusion and hemiparesis.
November 2015 (#1) 30 year old man with progressive visual field defect.
October 2015 (#2) 48 year old with headache and hemianopia.
October 2015 (#1) 30 year old woman with amenorrhoea and visual loss.
September 2015 (#2) 2 year old girl with large parieto-occiptal mass.
September 2015 (#1) 74 year old man with hearing loss, imbalance and hand numbness.
August 2015 (#2) 59 year old man with disseminated lung carcinoma and abnormal posterior fossa.
August 2015 (#1) 59 year old man withconfusion, personality change and periventricular lesions on MRI.
July 2015 (#2) 24 year old woman with acute back pain and spinal lesion.
July 2015 (#1) 16 month old male with head tilt, weakness, developmental delay and spinal mass.
June 2015 (#2) 19 year old man with headache, neck stiffness and hemiparesis.
June 2015 (#1) 55 year old Brazilian man with acute onset lower limb weakness.
May 2015 (#2) 11 year old boy with sacral pain and lesion in lower spinal canal.
May 2015 (#1) 2 month old male with hypotonia and MTM1 gene mutation.
April 2015 (#2) 41 year old male with long history of seizures and subcortical parietal lesion.
April 2015 (#1) 40 year old female with headache, vomiting and superficial lesions in brain.
March 2015 (#2) 33 year old with lesion in cervical cord.
March 2015 (#1) 67 year old man with log history of MS and cerebellar lesion.
February 2015 (#2) 43 year old woman with 6 months of nausea and vomiting causing significant weight loss, followed by ataxia and nystagmus.
February 2015 (#1) 11 year old boy who sustained head injury after episode of vertigo and visual disturbance.
January 2015 (#2) 35 year old man with painful forehead swelling and lytic skull lesion.
January 2015 (#1) 64 year old woman admitted with fatigue, headache, and weight loss.
December 2014 (#1) 13 year old female with ADHD, cognitive delay and seizures.
November 2014 (#2) 59 year old woman with nausea, vominting and cerebellopontine area mass.
November 2014 (#1) 37 year old woman with headache, weakness and ventricular mass.
October 2014 (#2) 24 year old woman with vertigo, vomiting and posterior fossa lesion.
October 2014 (#1) 44 year old obese, male smoker with involuntary movements and intracranial lesion.
September 2014 (#2) 77 year old woman with headache and altered behaviour
Sepetmber 2014 (#1) 48 year old woman with progressive hemisensory loss
August 2014 (#2) 69 year old woman with leg weakness and spinal mass
August 2014 (#1) 53 year old woman with headche and vomiting
July 2014 (#2) 20 year old man with haedache, photophobia and reduced GCS
July 2014 (#1) 70 year old male farmer with intermittent confusion
June 2014 (#2) 20 year old man with spastic tratrapareisis and hearing loss
June 2014 (#1) 29 year old man with proximal weakness and elevated creatine kinase
May 2014 (#2) 67 year old woman with back pain and intramedullary mass
May 2014 (#1) 31 year old woman with neck pain and clival mass
April 2014 (#3) 63 year old woman with dyspnoea, dysphagia and weakness
April 2014 (#3) 63 year old woman with dyspnoea, dysphagia and weakness
April 2014 (#2) 26 year old woman with visual disturbance prepontine mass
April 2014 (#1) 40 year old woman with sudden onset headache
March 2014 (#2) Two cases of intraventricular haemorrhage
March 2014 (#1) 6 year old girl with headache, vomiting and syncope and large parietal mass
February 2014 (#2) 56 year old man with congenital haert disease and ring enhancing cerebral lesions
February 2014 (#1) 46 year old woman with leg numbness and spinal lesion
December 2013 (#1) 72 year old woman with back pain and spinal mass
December 2013 (#2) 54 year old man with eye pain and visual loss
November 2013 (#2) 72 year old woman with SLE and recent onset headache and ataxia.
November 2013 (#1) 49 year old woman with ovarian tumour and pineal mass.
October 2013 (#2) 34 year old man with intra and supra-sellar mass.
October 2013 (#1) 26 year old man with memory loss and lethargy. Large hypothalamic-region mass.
September 2013 (#2) 79 year old man with Parkinsonism, back pain, leg weakness and urinary dysfunction.
September 2013 (#1) 42 year old man with new onset seizures and well circumscribed temporal lobe mass.
August 2013 (#2) 78 year old man with dysphagia, cranial nerve palsies and posterior fossa mass.
August 2013 (#1) 25 year old woman with lumbago and intradural masses.
July 2013 (#2) 73 year old male with progressive tetraparesis
July 2013 (#1) 39 year old male with fever and headaches
June 2013 (#2) 78 year old male with gait disturbance
June 2013 (#1) 30 year old male with headaches
May 2013 (#2) 59 year old female with neck and arm pain
May 2013 (#1) 8 year old male with headaches and vomiting
April 2013 (#2) 68 year old male with hearing loss
April 2013 (#1) 29 year old female with confusion and ataxia
March 2013 29 year old male with seizures
February 2013 (#2) 50 year old male with back pain and diplopia
February 2013 (#1) 29 year old male with ring enhancing mass
January 2013 (#2) 24 year old female with MS and intracranial mass
January 2013 (#1) 40 year old male with vertigo and headaches
December 2012 (#2) 47 year old woman with headache, visual and swallowing difficulties.
December 2012 (#1) 30 year old male with headache, hearing impairment and blackout.
November 2012 (#2) 63 year old woman with polycythaemia, vertigo, ataxia and weakness.
November 2012 (#1) 47 year old man with sudden onset leg numbness.
October 2012 (#2) 64 year old woman with anosmia.
October 2012 (#1) 32 year old male with fever and diahorrea. Previous subarachnoid haemorrahage followed by cognitive problems.
September 2012 (#2) 18 year old woman motor cyclist who crashed with a subdural mass.
September 2012 (#1) 26 year old male with difficulty in walking, diplopia and unlateral shaking.
August 2012 (#2) 40 year old woman with seizures and menstrual disorder
August 2012 (#1) 33 year old woman with headaches and visual loss
July 2012 (#2) 14 year old girl with sciatica and ataxia
July 2012 (#1) 76 year old man with gait disturbance
June 2012 (#2) Developmental lesion overlying spine
June 2012 (#1) 71 year old woman with atypical Parkinson’s disease
May 2012 (#2) 49 year old man with fever, altered mental state and enhancing brain lesions on MRI.
May 2012 (#1) 3 year old boy with drug-resistant seizures, naevi and lesion in uncus
April 2012 (#2) 52 year old male with Cushings and recurrant sellar mass
April 2012 (#1) 11 year old girl with scoliosis and abnormal cerebral veins
March 2012 (#2) 47 year old male with HIV infection and hemiplegia
March 2012 (#1) 28 year old woman with amenorrhoea and visual disturbance
February 2012 (#2) 23 year old man with seizures and cystic lesion
February 2012 (#1) 38 year old woman with diabetes insipidus, headache and hemiplegia
January 2012 (#2) 55 year old woman with leg pain
January 2012 (#1) A 4 month old with vomiting, seizures and large cerebral mass
December 2011 45 year old man with pineal region tumour
November 2011 39 year old man with syncope, nausea and vomiting
October 2011 2 year old with anuria, diarrhoea and decreasing conscious level
September 2011 48 year old man with vascular disease, vertigo, tinnitus, diplopia and ataxia
August 2011 71 year old woman with headache and proptosis
July 2011 58 year old man with phacomatosis, tinnitus, deafness and headaches
June 2011 42 year old woman with transient dizziness
May 2011 37 year old woman with deteriorating vision
April 2011 2 year old boy with imbalance and strabismus
March 2011 88 year old woman with Parkinsonism
February 2011 57 year old woman with recurrent nausea and vomiting
January 2011 16 month old girl with fever, hypoxia and seizures
December 2010 47 year old man with lower extremity weakness
November 2010 56 year old woman with headache
October 2010 46 year old man with lower extremity tingling
September 2010 A 3 year-old girl with altered mental status, gait difficulty and vomiting.
August 2010 17 year-old girl with headache and complex partial seizure
July 2010 A 54 year-old woman with a lesion compressing the medulla
June 2010 Posterior fossa lesion 45 years after ocular trauma
May 2010 35 year-old man with falcine tumor
April 2010 81 year-old male with confusion and weakness
March 2010 24 year-old male with headaches
February 2010 20 year-old lady with a paraspinal mass
January 2010 12 year-old boy with multiple brain masses
December 2009 (#2) A 10-year old girl with neck pain
December 2009 (#1) A 45-year-old male with left-sided Hemihypesthesia
November 2009 (#2) A 41 year-old woman with von Hippel-Lindau and a Cerebellar Lesion
November 2009 (#1) A 76 year-old woman with paraplegia
October 2009 (#2) A 25 year-old woman with a mass in the Hippocampus
October 2009 (#1) A 61 year-old woman with Osteomalacia and a Thoracic Spine Lesion
September 2009 (#2) A 61 year-old man with wide-based gait
September 2009 (#1) A 6 year-old with an extra-axial mass
August 2009 (#2) 35 year-old HIV-positive woman with brain lesion
August 2009 (#1) A 7 year-old boy with acute encephalopathy
July 2009 (#2) 59 year-old female with suprasellar mass
July 2009 (#1) A 9 year-old female with progressive weakness
June 2009 (#2) A 58 year old woman with a corpus callosum nodule at autopsy
June 2009 (#1) A 47 year-old male with a cerebellopontine angle tumor
May 2009 (#2) 22 year-old man with intracranial hypertension
May 2009 (#1) 76 year old man with cognitive and neurological symptoms
April 2009 (#2) 22 year-old woman with status epilepticus
April 2009 (#1) 6 year-old girl with hydrocephalus
March 2009 (#2) 46 year-old female with 5 month history of numbness in her toes
March 2009 (#1) 69 year-old man with left hemispheric necrotizing mass lesion
February 2009 (#2) 64 year-old man with atypical cerebral lesions
February 2009 (#1) 5 year-old male with interhemispheric frontal mass
January 2009 (#2) 31 year-old man with Balint’s syndrome
January 2009 (#1) 5 year-old boy with a clival mass
December 2008 (#2) 15 year-old boy with a posterior fossa tumor
December 2008 (#1) 72 year old man with new seizure while dancing
November 2008 (#2) 2 year-old girl with a posterior fossa tumor
November 2008 (#1) 12 year-old boy with a posterior fossa tumor
October 2008 (#2) A 33 year-old Chinese woman with a left frontal lobe tumor
October 2008 (#1) A 32 year-old man with a fourth ventricular mass
September 2008 (#2) A 16 year-old male with cerebellar mass
September 2008 (#1) A 28 year-old man with headache and aphasic speech and visual disturbances
August 2008 (#2) 59 year-old male with sellar mass
August 2008 (#1) 60 year-old female with extra-axial frontal mass
July 2008 (#2) 42 year-old man with Discoid lupus and progressive weakness
July 2008 (#1) 51 year-old man with sudden unexpected death
June 2008 (#2) 55 year-old man with a paraspinal mass
June 2008 (#1) 50 year-old woman with pigmented tumor of the 4th ventricle
May 2008 (#2) Recurrent cerebellar lesion in a young boy
May 2008 (#1) 59 year-old male with pan-hypopituitarism
April 2008 (#2) Neonate with occipital scalp defect
April 2008 (#1) 50 year-old man with Burkitt lymphoma
March 2008 (#2) 2 year-old girls with right leg weakness
March 2008 (#1) 44 year-old man with abnormal gait
February 2008 (#2) 70 year-old man with enlarged pineal gland
February 2008 (#1) 8 year-old child with lesion in the lentiform nucleus
January 2008 (#2) 23 year old Hispanic male with new onset seizures
January 2008 (#1) 67 year-old male with progressive paraparesis
December 2007 (#2) 56 year old male with left sided weakness
December 2007 (#1) 51 year old female with double vision
November 2007 (#2) 53 year old male with rapid cognitive decline
November 2007 (#1) An 80 year-old male with a ring-enhancing right basal ganglia lesion
October 2007 (#2) 61 year old man with hyponatremia
October 2007 (#1) 72 year old woman with right frontal mass
September 2007 (#2) 35 year old woman with intrasellar and suprasellar lesion
September 2007 (#1) 21 month old child with acute spastic paraparesis
August 2007 (#2) 40 year old woman with a progressive periventricular white matter lesion
August 2007 (#1) 47 year old woman with a clival mass
July 2007 (#2) 49 year-old female with history of head trauma
July 2007 (#1) 43 year-old Chinese man with retro-orbital mass
June 2007 (#2) A 55 year-old man with liver failure, delirium and seizures
June 2007 (#1) Leg weakness after liver transplant
May 2007 (#2) 15 year-old girl with cystic tumor
May 2007 (#1) 63 year-old man with dementia, ataxia and VI nerve palsy
April 2007 (#2) A 12-year-old girl with seizures and dementia
April 2007 (#1) A 57-year-old man with a dural-based parietal lobe tumor
March 2007 (#2) 40 year old male with history of brain tumor 10 years ago
March 2007 (#1) 66 year-old male with spinal mass at autopsy
February 2007 (#2) 30-year-old man with tuberous sclerosis
February 2007 (#1) 35-year-old woman with dural-based mass
January 2007 (#2) 76 year-old woman with recent bladder cancer and new brain lesion
January 2007 (#1) 27 year-old female with cranial nerve dysfunction
December 2006 37 year-old pregnant woman with new onset seizures.
November 2006 A 39-year-old man with new onset seizures
October 2006 A 37-year old male with headache
September 2006 A 42 year old man with a densely vascular spinal mass
August 2006 A 64 year-old woman with dementia and leukoencephalopathy
July 2006 A man in his mid-70’s with a sellar mass
June 2006 An 80-year-old female with neuropsychiatric changes
May 2006 A 57-year-old female with a benign tumor in the ethmoid sinus
April 2006 A 4-year-old girl with mass in the frontotemporal bone
March 2006 A 21-year-old female with a cystic brain lesion
February 2006 A 49-year-old man with neuropsychiatric symptoms followed by progressive cognitive decline
January 2006 A 70 year-old man with extrapyramidal symptoms, dementia and hemosiderosis
December 2005 A 19-year-old male with generalized seizures, unconsciousness and a deviation of gaze
November 2005 A 35-year-old woman with progressive bilateral leg weakness
October 2005 A 48 year old male with sudden onset of right sided weakness
September 2005 A 43 year old woman with a temporal mass
August 2005 A 45 year old male with symptomatic mass in the frontal lobe
July 2005 A 21-year-old female with a third ventricular tumor
June 2005 A 62-year old man with chronic pyothorax
May 2005 A 71 year old male with 4 decades of symptoms referable to both central and peripheral nervous system
April 2005 Woman aged 24 years with fourth ventricular mass
March 2005 A 15-year-old female with progressive myelopathy
February 2005 A 10-month-old boy with a large pineal tumor
January 2005 A 7-year-old boy with midline cerebella mass
December 2004 A one-year-old girl with an aggressive skull tumor
November 2004 Intradural mass of the cauda equina in a woman in her early-60s
October 2004 A man in his late-40s with progressive dementia
September 2004 Young girl with headache and stiff neck
August 2004 A man in his mid-60s with intermittent paresthesia of the abdomen and legs
July 2004 A man in his 40s with headaches and dyspnea
June 2004 A male in his late 60s with recurrent extracerebral tumor
May 2004 Newborn with intracranial mass
April 2004 A woman in her 50s with a cervical intra- and extraspinal mass lesion
March 2004 A 24-year-old woman with a one-year history of bifrontal headaches
February 2004 A 44-year-old man with a 2-year history of epistaxis
January 2004 A 74-year-old man with history of gastric carcinoma presented with partial-complex seizures
December 2003 A 70-year-old woman with a recurrent meningeal mass
November 2003 Neonatal female with congenital brain tumor
October 2003 A 59-year-old woman with sudden onset of diplopia
September 2003 A 79 year old woman with right frontal lobe mass
August 2003 A 47-year-old-woman with a 7-year-history of osteomalacia and hypophosphatemia
July 2003 A 63-year-old female with muscular atrophy
June 2003 A 33-year-old male with a long history of epilepsy
May 2003 A 57-year-old woman with slurred speech
April 2003 A 55-year-old diabetic male with progressive loss of sensitivity
March 2003 A 41-year-old woman with a solitary lesion in the liver
February 2003 A 53-year-old male with new onset seizures
January 2003 A 56-year-old woman with right frontal tumor of the dura
December 2002 A 19-year-old male with febrile illness after jet ski accident
November 2002 A 72-year-old woman with a pineal gland mass
October 2002 A 27-year-old female with epilepsy
September 2002 A 24-year-old female with a parieto-occipital tumor
August 2002 A 21-year-old male with cystic intracerebral tumor
July 2002 A 66-year-old female with a one-year history of progressive left proptosis
June 2002 A 57-year-old male with leptomeningeal and liver tumors
May 2002 A 38-year-old man and 69-year-old woman with dural based masses
April 2002 A 35-year-old healthy man with enlarging right parotid mass
March 2002 A 28-year-old woman with neck and back pain
February 2002 A 29-year-old woman with a skull mass for two months
January 2002 A 59-year-old woman with an intrasellar lesion
December 2001 Rapidly progressive motor weakness, starting in pregnancy
November 2001 A 67-year-old man in coma requiring prolonged mechanical ventilation
October 2001 A 40-year-old Xhosa male with back pain and leg weakness
September 2001 A 51-year-old man with seizures since childhood
August 2001 Sellar/suprasellar mass in a 59-year-old woman
July 2001 A 58-year-old man with a temporal bone mass
June 2001 A 61-year-old female with progressive confusion lethargy and headaches
May 2001 A 32-year-old female with dural mass encircling cervical spinal cord
April 2001 A 70-year–old woman with gait disorders
March 2001 A 16-year-old female with a cerebellar mass
February 2001 A 74-year-old man with a history over 3 months of increasing dyspnea and malaise
January 2001 A 37-year-old man with a history of Hodgkin’s disease
December 2000 A 16-month-old boy with 2-week history of progressive lethargy
November 2000 A 13-year-old girl with back pain and leg weakness
October 2000 A 47-year-old man with long-standing progressive tetraparesis
September 2000 A 15-year-old girl with parietal lobe lesion
August 2000 Two patients with putamen and white matter necrosis and hemorrhage
July 2000 A 70-year-old male with rigidity, decreased ocular movements, and dementia
June 2000 A 68-year-old woman with a history of progressive hearing loss
May 2000 A 35-year-old male with a left temporal lobe mass
April 2000 A 43-year-old male with generalized epileptic seizures
March 2000 A 5-month-old boy with occipital bone mass
February 2000 Dementia with motor dysfunction in a patient with liver disease
January 2000 A 12-year-old boy with recent onset seizures
December 1999 A 71-year-old woman with progressive sensori-motor polyneuropathy
November 1999 A 56-year-old woman with left facial numbness
October 1999 A 70-year-old female with seizures and progressive dementia
September 1999 A 24-year-old female with progressive lower extremity dystonia, dysarthia, dysphagia and mental impairment
August 1999 A 49-year-old woman with visual disturbances
July 1999 A 66-year-old man with a subacute multi-system disorder and polyneuropathy
June 1999 A 22-year-old female with intraventricular mass
May 1999 A 16-year-old male with history of low grade astrocytoma
April 1999 A 44-year-old man with a bleeding intracerebral tumour
March 1999 A 26-year-old male with a history of AIDS
February 1999 A 54-year-old man with severe muscle weakness
January 1999 Fetus with echogenic mass in third ventricle
December 1998 A 16-year-old female with headaches, lethargy and a sellar/suprasellar mass
November 1998 A 70-year-old woman with SLE, paraproteinemia and polyneuropathy
October 1998 A 61-year–old male with brain tumor and oral, lung, and palpebral masses
September 1998 An 18-year-old male with large cystic orbital tumor
August 1998 A 45-year-old man with headache, ataxia, and impairment of the state of balance
July 1998 A 21-year-old man with new-onset seizures and a temporal lobe mass
June 1998 A 2-year-old boy with lumbosacral mass
May 1998 A 36-year-old male with HIV infection and multiple cranial neuritis
April 1998 A 30-year-old male with various sensory abnormalities
March 1998 A 42-year-old male with back pain, progressive right leg weakness and bilateral lower leg numbness
February 1998 An 82-year-old Caucasian male with progressive visual deficits
January 1998 A 43-year-old Caucasian male with progressive right lower extremity radicular pain
December 1997 48-year-old woman with chronic myalgias after exercise
November 1997 Dura based occipital mass in a 41-year-old female
October 1997 19-year-old male with frontal lobe tumor
September 1997 26-year-old woman with new onset siezures
August 1997 13-year–old girl with progressive movement disorder
July 1997 Diabetic Male with Transient Ischemic Attacks
June 1997 42-year-old man with left facial weakness
May 1997 31-year-old woman with seizures, fatigue and attention deficits
April 1997 32-year-old man with mental status changes and a severe occipital headache
March 1997 4-year-old girl with ring chromosome 22 and brain tumor
February 1997 9-year-old girl with nausea, vomiting and hydrocephalus
January 1997 7-year-old girl with seizures
December 1996 22-month-old girl with a cervicomedullary mass
November 1996 Premature baby with lethargy and coma
October 1996 51-year-old woman with new rapidly progressive weakness
September 1996 44-year-old woman with new brain lesion
August 1996 11-year-old girl with frontal lobe tumor
July 1996 Precocious Puberty
June 1996 Anorexia Nervosa
May 1996 Hydrocephalus in a 9-month-old infant
April 1996 Pituitary Tumor