Relapsed High-Risk Medulloblastoma: Stable Disease after Two Years of Treatment with Somatostatin Analog - Case Report

Cureus. 2016 Jan 4;8(1):e446. doi: 10.7759/cureus.446.

Abstract

Cerebellar medulloblastoma in adults is an uncommon disease. Therefore, most information comes from the pediatric population, and the treatment for relapses is based on series and case reports. The expression of somatostatin receptors has been identified in most medulloblastoma patients, and preclinical experience has shown a promissory response to somatostatin analogs. This report presents a female patient with a high-risk left cerebellar medulloblastoma diagnosed at age 16 years old who was treated with complete resection, cranial-spinal radiotherapy, and chemotherapy. She presented again at 18 years of age with a sustained progression of her tumor, despite radiosurgery and another line of chemotherapy. Octreotide scintigraphy at that time showed a moderate to high expression of somatostatin receptors; thus, the patient was started on monthly octreotide. She is now 20 and has achieved stable disease over more than two years of active treatment without any drug-related toxicity. Somatostatin analogs could be considered as a treatment option in selected cases of medulloblastoma. Review of the literature is presented for this unusual response.

Keywords: medulloblastoma; octreotide; somatostatin.

Publication types

  • Case Reports