Intramedullary spinal cord metastasis from gastric cancer. Case report.

A case of intramedullary spinal cord metastasis from gastric cancer is reported. A 51-year-old woman presented with hemicord syndrome that had progressed within 1 month to tetraplegia. Despite total resection of the tumor, she died of disseminated intravascular coagulation and multiple organ failure. Examination of pathological findings demonstrated undifferentiated adenocarcinoma, and postoperative gastroendoscopic study revealed advanced gastric cancer. To the authors' knowledge this is the first case of intramedullary spinal cord metastasis from gastric cancer. The clinical characteristics of the disease are discussed.