Work

Case Report: Metastatic lung cancer in Meckel's Cave: a radiotherapy successful case and literature review

Year: 2025

Type: article

Abstract: Background: Meckel's cave (MC) is a highly uncommon site for metastatic disease, particularly from primary lung cancer. Case presentation: We report a clinical case of a 70-year-old man presenting with left trigeminal pain, left ptosis, and restricted abduction of the left eyeball. The patient had a 2-year history of stage IV lung squamous cell carcinoma. Contrast-enhanced brain MRI and FDG-PET/CT showed an ill-defined mass with a heterogeneously enhancing lesion involving the left MC and middle cranial fossa. Stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS, 30 Gy/5 fx) achieved significant improvement in symptoms and regression of radiologic tumors within 1 month. Our review of relevant literature identified only two reported cases of lung adenocarcinoma metastasizing to MC. In addition, we examined the limited literature on other malignant tumors metastatic to MC managed with radiotherapy. Conclusion: This is the first reported case of MC metastasis from lung squamous cell carcinoma successfully treated with SRS. Effective management of MC metastasis requires histology-specific radiotherapy strategies, with squamous cell carcinoma benefiting from hypofractionated SRS.

Source: Frontiers in Oncology

DOI: 10.3389/fonc.2025.1613711

Authors: Chao Chen, Zhiqin Lu, Gang Lin, Yujie Hu, Yong Guo

Institution: Zhejiang Chinese Medical University

Language: English

Topic: Brain Metastases and Treatment

Subfield: Pulmonary and Respiratory Medicine

Field: Medicine

Domain: Health Sciences

SDG: Good health and well-being

Open Access status: gold

Estimated APC paid: $3,801