The clinical and radiological diagnosis of cartilaginous tumors of the base of the skull.

Cartilaginous tumors of the base of the skull, though rare, comprise an interesting group of intracranial tumors which have rather distinct properties - somewhat characteristic clinical and radiologic signs, according to site of origin, and the potential for relatively long term survival even when malignant. It is the purpose of this paper to describe a clinical and radiologic experience with six such cases, a significantly useful series, as fewer than 150 cases have been reported in the world literature to date. This presentation comprises three segments. Initially, an introductory section outlines the basic historical, pathological, and radiological concepts. The second section comprises a clinical review of the case material and an analysis of the diagnostic and therapeutic characteristics. Finally, a section reviews the roentgen signs, including the role of specialized radiologic techniques to determine the specificity of x-ray findings.