CEREBELLAR HEMANGIOBLASTOMA AND ACUTE LYMPHOBLASTIC LEUKEMIA: A CHANCE OR GENETICALLY DETERMINED ASSOCIATION?

Abstract

Introduction: Hemangioblastomas are benign neoplasms with well-defined histopathological characteristics, which arise from the disordered growth of stromal and vascular cells. Despite some controversy, they are described by the WHO as being of meningeal origin. They represent 1.5-3% of CNS tumors and can occur sporadically or in association with von Hippel Lindau disease. Hemangioblasts are precursor cells that can give rise to hematopoietic and endothelial cells. Objective: To report a rare association of an isolated cerebellar hemangioblastoma with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) and review of the literature. Patients and Methods: A 16-year-old patient with cerebellar expansive process underwent tumor resection with a histopathological diagnosis of hemangioblastoma. Some aspects of the literature are discussed. Results: Although some articles correlate hematological diseases with tumors of vascular origin, to the best of our knowledge, no cases of ALL and hemangioblastoma have been found so far. Conclusions: Hemangioblastomas are rare CNS tumors and the association with ALL has been described for the first time. Although speculative, the association between the two neoplasms can be justified by the origin of the same precursor cell – hemangioblasts.