Multicentric pleomorphic xanthoastrocytoma in a patient with neurofibromatosis type 1. Case report and review of the literature

Abstract

The authors report an unusual case of multicentric pleomorphic xanthoastrocytoma (PXA) in a 36-year-old woman with neurofibromatosis Type 1 (NF1). Both lesions were diagnosed as PXA but demonstrated different neuroimaging features and very different outcomes. Although the occipital lesion was cured surgically, the cerebellar tumor recurred three times and underwent malignant transformation into an anaplastic oligodendroglioma. The authors discuss the causes of PXA and suggest that it could originate from common bipotential precursor cells with two phenotypes.