Coccydynia due to a benign notochordal cell tumor.

Abstract

Case report. To present a rare case of a notochordal cell tumor. We report on a 27-year-old female patient with pain at the lower back and muscle cramps in the area of the right hip. Image studies demonstrated a cystic lesion of the coccyx. As clinical symptoms became chronic and were resistant to conservative treatment, a resection of the coccyx was performed. Histology revealed an intraosseous benign notochordal cell tumor. This tumor represents a recently described notochordal cell proliferation biologically distinct from chordomas. Overdiagnosis of these notochordal cell proliferations as chordomas may occur if clinicians and pathologists are unfamiliar with the spectrum of notochordal proliferations.