- Astrocytomas are most
common intracranial tumors composed predominantly of neoplastic astrocytes.
They are subdivided into low grade astrocytoma (Grade II), anaplastic astrocytomas
(Grade III) and glioblastoma (Grade IV). Grade I is reserved for special histologic
variants, such as pilocytic astrocytoma.
- The preferential location
for astrocytomas is the brain where it can arise anywhere from cerebral hemispheres
down to the pons, depending on the tumor type, histologic grade as well as
patient's age. Tumours can reach the spinal cord through contiguous spread
or metastasis; less frequently, they can originate in the spinal cord (ex.
anaplastic astrocytoma)
- Gross pathology: astrocytoma
of cervical spinal cord (below, left); metastatic lesions on cervical cord
and spinal roots (below, right)
- Microscopic pathology
of an astrocytoma (below)
- MRI images: T1 image
of a cervical astrocytoma (below, left); T2 image of another cervical astrocytoma
(below, center); T2 image of spinal cord astrocytoma with meningioma of the
falx (below, right)