Are familial colloid cysts of the third ventricle associated with a worse clinical course than sporadic forms?

Introduction: The incidence of asymptomatic colloid cysts is increasing due to the widespread use of neuroimaging tools. According to previous works, familial forms (within first-degree relatives) represent 5-25% of the cases, and it is not clear whether they display specific features influencing the clinical behavior of the disease.

Evidence Acquisition: We reviewed the literature to extract data from papers dealing with familial colloid cysts.

Lhermitte duclos disease and Cowden disease: clinical, pathological and neuroimaging study of a case.

The authors report the case of a 26-year-old female patient affected by Lhermitte Duclos disease and Cowden disease. Preoperative MRI allowed a correct diagnosis which was confirmed by pathological examination. The authors stress the possibility that Lhermitte Duclos and Cowden disease be a single phakomatosis; for this reason all the patients affected by Lhermitte-Duclos should be screened for the presence of multiple hamartomas or malignant neoplastic lesions typical of Cowden disease.

Spinal malignant melanotic schwannoma. Case report.

The authors report a rare case of spinal cord compression syndrome due to a malignant melanotic schwannoma. Pathogenesis, diagnostic difficulty and therapeutical problems are discussed. The authors conclude that such tumours should be surgically treated due to the possibility of a benign clinical behaviour even in those cases showing malignant histological features.

Multiple primary cerebral hydatid cysts: case report.

The authors report the case of a patient with primary multiple cerebral hydatid cysts emphasizing the role played by MRI in planning the surgical approach. The indications for medical treatment of such lesions are also discussed.