Il punto su
Il craniofaringioma
Craniopharyngioma
Nicola Salce1,2, Elena Giovannelli1,2, Vanna Graziani1, Mariarosaria Cozzolino1, Diego Mazzatenta3, Mino Zucchelli3, Federico Marchetti1
1UOC di Pediatria e Neonatologia, Ospedale di Ravenna, AUSL della Romagna
2Scuola di Specializzazione in Pediatria, Università di Ferrara
3IRCCS, Istituto delle Scienze Neurologiche di Bologna, Neurochirurgia pediatrica, Bologna
Settembre 2021 | DOI: 10.53126/MEBXXIV210
Abstract
Craniopharyngioma (CP) is a rare epithelial low-grade tumour that develops in the sellar/suprasellar region of the brain, along the craniopharyngeal duct. It has a bimodal distribution and the first peak occurs in paediatric age almost exclusively consisting of the adamantinomatous subtype. A second peak occurs in adulthood after the fifth decade of life and is more likely to be of the papillary subtype. Therapy is based on surgical removal, so the best approach is the endonasal approach, which is sometimes associated with radiation therapy. Molecular target drugs are a promising novelty, indeed they are already in use in adults and are being tested in children. Although CP is considered a low malignancy tumour, its localization and close relationships with important structures such as the optical pathways, the hypothalamic-pituitary axis and the thalamus burden it with important complications (visual disturbances, central obesity, dysendocrinopathies) that can interfere with the patient’s quality of life.
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