Post-operative radiotherapy for recurrent dermoid cysts of the spine: a report of 3 cases.

We report three cases of recurrent, intraspinal dermoid cysts managed with post-operative radical radiotherapy. In all cases, the period between last surgery and cystic re-accumulation has been lengthened by the use of involved-field radiotherapy. This combined-modality approach could be beneficial in decreasing the probability of recurrence associated with incompletely-resected tumours, or in patients whose co-morbidities put them at increased operative risk for serial neurosurgical procedures.