Abstract
Ganglioglioma belongs to the group of rare mixed glioneural tumors, that grow from glial cells and neurons (mature but dysmorfic).According to some theories they arise from precursor stem cells, where glial cells can be malignantly transformed. Typicallyganglioglioma is a low grade glioma containing distinct gangliocytic elements.
Macroscopically the tumor is localized on thesurface of the brain and often expands to the cortex; it contains both solid and cystic portions, calcifications, rarely hemorrhageand necrosis. Microscopically ganglioglioma consists of a mixture of dysplastic neuronal cells and glial cells, most commonlyastrocytes, which forms the proliferative pool of neoplastic tumor cells.
The biological behaviour of ganglioglioma is generallyless aggressive compared to the "pure" glial tumors. Rarely ganglioglioma progresses to the high grade glial tumor due to theadditional genetic alterations.
Aggressive forms resemble morphologically malignant gliomas, but immunohistochemically alsosignificant neuronal differentiation of tumor cells is present. Ganglioglioma is the cortical lesion with two typical images in MRimaging.
The oncological treatment of anaplastic ganglioglioma has no standard. Only limited informations about the effectivenessof the oncological therapy are available in the literature for clinicians.