Spinal cord tumors

[Cami]

A spinal cord tumor is a noncancerous (benign) or cancerous (malignant) growth in or around the spinal cord.

People may have weak muscles, lose sensation in particular areas of the body, or become unable to control bowel and bladder function.
Magnetic resonance imaging can usually detect spinal cord tumors.
Treatment may involve surgical removal, radiation therapy, or both.

(See also Overview of Tumors of the Nervous System.)
Spinal cord tumors are much less common than brain tumors. Spinal cord tumors may be

Primary
Secondary

Primary spinal cord tumors may be cancerous or noncancerous.
Primary spinal cord tumors may originate in the cells within or next to the spinal cord. Only about one third of primary spinal cord tumors originate in the cells within the spinal cord. These tumors can extend within the cord, block the flow of cerebrospinal fluid (the fluid that surrounds the brain and spinal cord), and cause a fluid-filled cavity (syrinx) to form.
Most primary spinal cord tumors originate in cells next to the spinal cord, such as those of the meninges—the layers of tissue that cover the spinal cord (see figure How the Spine Is Organized).
Meningiomas and neurofibromas, which originate in cells next to the cord, are the most common primary spinal tumors. They are noncancerous.
Secondary spinal cord tumors, which are more common, are metastases of cancer originating in another part of the body and thus are always cancerous. Metastases most commonly spread to the vertebrae from cancers that originate in other parts of the body. These cancers include

Lung cancer
Breast cancer
Prostate cancer
Kidney cancer
Thyroid cancer
Lymphomas
Melanoma

Metastases usually put pressure on (compress) the spinal cord or nerve roots from the outside. Many of these tumors invade and destroy bone before they compress the spinal cord.
Most spinal cord tumors that are located in the cells next to the spinal cord (rather than within it) are metastatic.

[PussyCat]

Spinal cord tumors may develop within the spinal cord parenchyma, directly destroying tissue, or outside the cord parenchyma, often compressing the cord or nerve roots. Symptoms can include progressive back pain and neurologic deficits referable to the spinal cord or spinal nerve roots. Diagnosis is by MRI. Treatment may include corticosteroids, surgical excision, and radiation therapy.
(See also Overview of Spinal Cord Disorders.)
Spinal cord tumors may be intramedullary (within the cord parenchyma) or extramedullary (outside the parenchyma).