Cerebral astroblastoma: immunohistochemical and ultrastructural features. Case report.

Astroblastoma is a rare glial tumor occurring predominantly in the cerebral hemispheres of young adults. Foci of astroblastoma-like patterns are commonly found in glioblastomas and other malignant glial tumors and cause confusion over the classification of the tumor as an individual entity. However, the existence of astroblastoma in histologically pure form and its typically long history, as compared with the more aggressive gliomas in which it may occur as a pattern, distinguish it as a separate and distinct tumor. A case of pure astroblastoma of the cerebral hemisphere is reported in a 3-year-old child with a 5-year course. The tumor has been resected five times, and its pattern has remained the same in all recurrences. The child is presently alive with some neurological deficit. The immunohistochemical and electron microscopical findings of this tumor are presented, and the historical development of the entity is discussed.