Bilateral sudden sensorineural hearing loss as a presentation of metastatic adenocarcinoma of unknown primary mimicking cerebellopontine angle tumor on the magnetic resonance image

Am J Otolaryngol. 2006 Mar-Apr;27(2):143-5. doi: 10.1016/j.amjoto.2005.07.019.

Abstract

This report presented a case of sudden profound bilateral sensorineural hearing loss with progressive facial diparesis in a 64-year-old woman. The magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) finding mimicked bilateral masses in the cerebellopontine angle (CPA) in an absence of clinical meningeal or parenchymal involvements at the first presentation. Surgical biopsy and histopathologic finding identified masses secondary to direct invasion of adenocarcinoma of gastrointestinal origin. Many investigations could not discover the primary site of the metastatic adenocarcinoma. Grave prognosis was observed in all cases reported including ours; the patient died 10 weeks after onset of symptoms.

Publication types

  • Case Reports

MeSH terms

  • Adenocarcinoma / diagnosis*
  • Cerebellar Neoplasms / diagnosis*
  • Cerebellopontine Angle / pathology*
  • Diagnosis, Differential
  • Fatal Outcome
  • Female
  • Hearing Loss, Sensorineural / diagnosis*
  • Hearing Loss, Sensorineural / etiology
  • Humans
  • Magnetic Resonance Imaging*
  • Middle Aged
  • Neoplasms, Unknown Primary