Intracranial teratoma in children: The role of chromosome 21 trisomy

Teratomas are very rare intracranial tumors and cytogenetic information on this group remains rare. We report a case of a mature teratoma with abnormal +21 trisomy in tumor karyotype ocurring in a non-Down syndrome (DS) infant. Additionally, the evidence for the contribution of chromosome 21 trisomy in this neoplasia are briefly reviewed. The 6-month-old male baby presented with a posterior fossa tumor. Histological evaluation of tumor specimen showed a mature teratoma composed of fully differentiated ectodermal, mesodermal and endodermal components. Although somatic karyotyping of the index case was normal, composite tumor karyotype depicted 47, XY, +21[6]/46,XY[6]. Besides previous reports of children with DS and intracranial teratomas, this is the first report to describe the occurrence of an isolated chromosome 21 trisomy within the tumor of a non-DS child. The participation of chromosome 21 in this rare pediatric tumor, either somatic or restricted to tumor specimen, may deserve special interest and further investigation.