Abstract
Background Benign notochordal cell tumor is an extremely rare benign tumor. Usually, the central axis of the human body is found. we describe a rare case of BNCT involving the cervical vertebral body and its appendages, mainly focusing on its imaging and pathological features. To our knowledge, no similar cases have been previously reported.
Case presentation
The patient, a 50-year-old woman, had experienced neck pain and discomfort for 10 years. Radiography and computed tomography revealed a scattered high-density shadow located in the C4 vertebral body and its attachment area. Plain magnetic resonance imaging showed that the T1-weighted images had a uniformly low signal. Conversely, T2-weighted magnetic resonance imaging displayed a constantly high signal intensity, with no unmistakable enhancement signal observed in the enhanced images. Under a microscope, the cells from resected tissue had a lamellar structure with homogeneous adipocyte-like vacuolated and less-vacuolated eosinophils. Immunohistochemical staining showed positivity to immunohistochemical markers, such as AE1 / AE3 (CK-pan) and brachyury. Because of the rare nature of benign intraosseous chordal cell tumors, it is necessary to record and review them. This is a rare manifestation of BNCT.
Conclusion
BNCT can exist in the vertebral body and its appendages of the cervical spine at the same time or may suggest that BNCT has a certain degree of intraosseous erosion ability. For patients diagnosed with BNCT, the most appropriate treatment plan should be selected to avoid the adverse effects of overtreatment.