Germ Cell Tumor - Location

Location

Despite their name, germ cell tumors occur both within and outside the ovary and testis.

• head
  • inside the cranium — pineal and suprasellar locations are most commonly reported
  • inside the mouth — a fairly common location for teratoma
• neck
• mediastinum — account for 1% to 5% of all germ cell neoplasms
• pelvis, particularly sacrococcygeal teratoma
• ovary
• testis

In females, germ cell tumors account for 30% of ovarian tumors, but only 1 to 3% of ovarian cancers in North America. In younger women germ cell tumors are more common, thus in patients under the age of 21, 60% of ovarian tumors are of the germ cell type, and up to one-third are malignant. In males, germ cell tumors of the testis occur typically after puberty and are malignant (testicular cancer). In neonates, infants, and children younger than 4 years, the majority of germ cell tumors are sacrococcygeal teratomas.

Males with Klinefelter syndrome have a 50 times greater risk of germ cell tumors (GSTs). In these persons, GSTs usually contain nonseminomatous elements, present at an earlier age, and seldom are gonadal in location.