Oncology & Hematology Coding Alert

Question: How do I report malignant meningeal and spinal cord tumors?

Florida Subscriber

Answer: The key to coding spinal tumors lies in knowing which structure of the spine is actually involved.

For the spinal cord: Report C72.0 (Malignant neoplasm of spinal cord).

For the cauda equina: Report C72.1 (Malignant neoplasm of cauda equina). (The cauda equina is the bundle of spinal nerves and spinal nerve roots that originate in the lower end of the spinal cord.)

For the cerebral meninges: Report C70.0 (Malignant neoplasm of cerebral meninges).

For the spinal meninges: Report C70.1 (Malignant neoplasm of spinal meninges).

For unspecified malignant neoplasms of the meninges: Report C70.9 (Malignant neoplasm of meninges, unspecified).