Atypical onset of sciatica in a patient with a filum terminale hemangioblastoma.

Hemangioblastomas are uncommon lesions that represent nearly 4% of the tumors of the spinal cord. Three fourths of them are sporadic, and the remainder are components of von Hippel Lindau (VHL) disease.1,2 They are mostly found in the cerebellum, although they can develop in the brain stem or spinal cord; of the latter, they are only rarely located in the filum terminale.3 The filum terminale is a delicate thread-like portion of fibrous tissue, a modification of the pia mater. It is about 20 cm long and originates at the vertex of the conus medullaris at the base of the coccyx, providing longitudinal support to the spinal cord.