The GNAQ in the haystack: intramedullary meningeal melanocytoma of intermediate grade at T9-10 in a 58-year-old woman

J Neurosurg. 2016 Jul;125(1):53-6. doi: 10.3171/2015.5.JNS15233. Epub 2015 Nov 6.

Abstract

Meningeal melanocytomas are rare tumors. They are derived from leptomeningeal melanocytes and predominantly occur along the spine and the posterior fossa. Here, the authors report a case of intramedullary melanocytoma of intermediate grade in a 58-year-old female patient who was initially misdiagnosed with malignant melanoma until mutational analyses of a panel of genes associated with melanotic tumors led to reclassification.

Keywords: CNS tumors; GNAQ mutation; meningeal melanocytoma; oncology.

Publication types

  • Case Reports

MeSH terms

  • Diagnosis, Differential
  • Female
  • GTP-Binding Protein alpha Subunits, Gq-G11 / genetics*
  • Humans
  • Melanoma / genetics*
  • Melanoma / pathology*
  • Meningeal Neoplasms / genetics*
  • Meningeal Neoplasms / pathology*
  • Middle Aged
  • Thoracic Vertebrae

Substances

  • GNAQ protein, human
  • GTP-Binding Protein alpha Subunits, Gq-G11