Cerebral pilocytic astrocytoma.

Cerebral pilocytic astrocytoma is a known intracranial tumor, but its biological characteristics are less well documented. The authors report 30 patients with cerebral pilocytic astrocytoma who were accessioned by the Armed Forces Institute of Pathology between 1970 and 1980. Histological appearance of the tumor was correlated with clinical characteristics. Mean age of onset was 22.15 years, mean preoperative duration of symptoms was 3.77 years, and mean postoperative survival was 5.91 years, with 20 of 23 (87%) known to ultimately survive surgery. These cases of cerebral pilocytic astrocytoma exhibited histologic characteristics consistent with that of a low-grade tumor. Although several of these tumors were of guarded prognosis due to location, degree of infiltration or cyst recurrence, they generally demonstrated a natural course of a relatively low-grade neoplasm.