Metastasis of lung adenosquamous carcinoma to meningioma: case report with literature review

The occurrence of metastasis of a systemic neoplasm to an intracranial tumor is a rare phenomenon. Meningiomas have been reported as the most common intracranial tumor to harbor a systemic metastasis, with breast and lung carcinomas being the most common sites of origination. Here, we report a case of an adenocarcinoma metastasis of an adenosquamous lung carcinoma found within a meningioma, resulting in the patient’s first clinical manifestations. We also review the literature for other cases of adenocarcinoma metastatic to a meningioma and suggest mechanisms that make meningiomas likely to harbor systemic metastases including increased vascularity, slow growth rate, increased hyaline content and expression of cell-cell adhesion molecules.