Abstract

A clinicopathologic study of a case of gliomotosis cerebri is described in 41-year-old man who had progressive memory loss, confusion, and mental deterioration. He developed bilateral signs in the last month of hospitalization and died 13 months after the onset of the symptoms. Postmortem examination showed the brain to be of normal size and configuration with slight swelling of the gyri. Histologic examination revealed extensive demyelination of white matter, diffuse infiltration of tumor cells in the cerebrum and brain stem, and some disgliosis of the spinal cord. The case illustrates that this disease can present with bizarre clinical symptoms and can mimic various neurologic and psychiatric problems. In spite of great progress in neurologic science, the diagnosis of gliomatosis cerebri is difficult and rarely has been made during life. Brain biopsy should be considered in these cases.