Clinicopathological features of sellar region xanthogranuloma: correlation with Rathke’s cleft cyst

Xanthogranuloma of the sellar region is a rare clinical observation. Although it was included in the World Health Organization (WHO) brain tumor classification in 2000, its clinical features and pathogenesis remain uncertain. We report herein seven cases of xanthogranuloma of the sellar region who underwent transsphenoidal surgery at Tokyo Women’s Medical University between 2005 and 2011, and discuss the clinical characteristics of this tumor. Six out of these 7 patients (86 %) presented with endocrinological dysfunction, six (86 %) had headaches, five (71 %) had visual field disturbances, and three (43 %) had diplopia including two with unilateral ptosis. Pathological findings revealed cholesterol clefts, hemosiderin deposits, chronic inflammatory infiltrates, multinucleated giant cells, macrophages, and fibrous proliferation. Of these seven cases, components of Rathke’s cleft cyst were observed for six. Xanthogranuloma in the sellar region is suspected of being a terminal stage resulting from a secondary reaction caused by repeated inflammatory change, hemorrhage, and degeneration of a Rathke’s cleft cyst.