The role of pelvic rehabilitation in quality of life in a patient harboring metastatic chordoma: a case report

Abstract

Introduction: Chordoma is a malignant tumor that usually involves the axial skeleton. Intradural chordomas are even rarer and 37 cases have been reported to the best of our knowledge. We present a case of a patient with an atypical metastatic diffuse intradural spinal involvement. Objective: To investigate therapeutic approaches such as pelvic physiotherapy for hospitalized and palliative patients in a private institution diagnosed with advanced cancer. Case Report: We present a 33-year-old woman previously submitted to five brain surgeries to treat a posterior fossa intradural chordoma since December 2012. There were new vertebral intradural lesions. The patient underwent complementary treatment with pelvic physiotherapy to improve the quality of life of the urinary and fecal system. Material and Methods: After six sessions of pelvic physiotherapy in bed and a month of behavioral monitoring and exercise practice, she returned to the condition of adequate urinary continence, thus obtaining an expressiveness in the overall quality of life.

Keywords

• brain neoplasm
• chordoma
• spine
• spinal cord
• recurrence
• rehabilitations
• quality of life