Giant cerebral cavernous malformation

ABSTRACT

Cerebral cavernous malformations [CCMs] that are 6 cm or more in size have been loosely labeled as "giant" in the literature. Lesions of such size are rare with only 21 cases reported in the literature to date. We report a 27-year-old female patient who presented with raised intracranial pressure and focal neurological deficits which were related to a giant CCM. The pathology was documented by a preoperative MRI and confirmed by histopathological examination after the lesion was excised completely. A review of all the reported giant CCMs is carried out and it is hoped that the presentation will draw neurosurgeons attention to the clinical, radiological and histological features of giant CCMs and encourage a wider acceptance of giant CCMs as the subgroup of CCMs that are 6 cm or more in size