Revista de columna vertebral y neurocirugía

Spinal Melanocytoma : A Case Report

M Ozgur Taskapilioglu, Pinar Eser and Ahmet Bekar

Spinal Melanocytoma : A Case Report

Spinal melanocytoma, a rare tumor of melanocytic origin, usually arises from intracranial structures but may also arise from the spinal cord. They are solitary low-grade tumors and do not invade the peripheral structures. They can occur in all the age groups and are more frequent in the fifth decade with a slightly female predominance. They localize frequently intradural extramedullary especially at the cervical or thoracal region. Most authors agree that complete surgical excision is the best treatment. The role of radiotherapy and chemotherapy still remain controversial. Here, we report a patient with a melanocytoma in the right cervicothorocal medullary region which was resected gross totally.