Pineal germinomas with granulomatous inflammation Report of two cases and review of the literature

Abstract

The authors report on two cases of pineal germinomas with granulomatous inflammation (granulomatous germinomas). Macroscopically, both tumors were relatively hard and grayish in color. Histological examination revealed a germinoma with multinucleated giant cells and Schaumann bodies in one case, and a germinoma with the background of acellular fibrillated matrix in the other. On immunohistochemical analysis, the granulomatous germinomas were shown to contain many macrophages, T- and B-lymphocytes, and glial fibrillary acid protein-positive cells infiltrating the specimens, compared to nongranulomatous germinomas. Analysis of Masson's trichrome staining tests showed that large areas of the granulomatous germinomas were occupied by a collagenous component; this was not the case in cases of nongranulomatous germinomas. Analysis of monoclonal anti-human Ki-67 results showed that the granulomatous germinomas had a lower score than nongranulomatous germinomas (p < 0.05, unpaired t-test), indicating that germinomas with granulomatous inflammation may have a better prognosis.