Intracranial germinoma with Down's syndrome: A case report and review of the literature

BACKGROUND Down's syndrome's association with malignancies such as leukemia is well known, but its association with brain tumor appears to be rare. We reviewed such rare cases of Down's syndrome and intracranial germ-cell tumor. CASE REPORT A 10-year-old boy with Down's syndrome and intracranial germinoma located in the left basal ganglia is reported. The patient presented with right hemiparesis and was treated with a combination of surgery, chemotherapy with cisplatin and etoposide, and irradiation. CONCLUSIONS We speculate that the percentage of germ-cell tumors is high among Down syndrome patients with brain tumors and that the most common site is the basal ganglia. (C) 1997 by Elsevier Science Inc.