A case of neurolymphomatosis caused by follicular lymphoma successfully treated with bendamustine

AL amyloidosis presenting with isolated lumbosacral radiculoplexus neuropathy

A 45-year-old man presented with an isolated sciatic mononeuropathy, which then evolved into a lumbosacral radiculoplexus neuropathy. His initial symptoms included lower limb pain, sensory disturbance and later weakness, without autonomic dysfunction. Neurophysiology suggested a postganglionic neuropathy. MR and ultrasound scans of the thighs showed right sciatic nerve thickening, and CSF analysis showed albuminocytological dissociation. Fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography (FDG PET) was unremarkable. He then developed orthostatic symptoms and urinary disturbance, and was found to have an IgM paraprotein. Fat aspirate, cardiac and whole-body imaging found no amyloid deposition, and genetic testing for transthyretin amyloidosis was negative. A bone marrow biopsy was unremarkable. However, neuropathology review of a proximal, fascicular nerve biopsy identified a lambda chain-restricted plasma cell population with positive Congo red staining, leading to a diagnosis of peripheral nerve restricted amyloid light amyloidosis. We discuss the diagnostic approach to this case from the perspectives of neurology, neurophysiology, radiology and neuropathology.

Neurolymphomatosis in follicular lymphoma: an autopsy case report

Neurolymphomatosis is a neurological manifestation of lymphoma that involves the cranial or spinal peripheral nerves, nerve roots, and plexus with direct invasion of neoplastic cells. Neurolymphomatosis is rare among patients with low-grade lymphoma. We report an autopsied case of neurolymphomatosis that arose from follicular lymphoma. A 49-year-old woman who presented with pain of her neck and shoulder and numbness of her chin. Computed tomography revealed enlarged lymph nodes in her whole body, and biopsy from the axillary lymph node revealed grade 2 follicular lymphoma. Although the patient underwent chemotherapy, she gradually developed muscle weakness in the upper limbs and sensory disturbances of the trunk and limbs. ¹⁸ F-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography (FDG-PET) revealed increased tracer uptake of the cervical nerve roots. Repeated FDG-PET after additional therapy revealed progression of disease within the nerve roots and brachial plexus, whereas gadolinium-contrast magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) showed weak enhancement of the cervical nerve roots without formation of mass lesions. She died after a total disease duration of 12 months. Postmortem observations revealed invasion of lymphoma cells into the cervical nerve roots, dorsal root ganglia, and subarachnoid spaces of the spinal cord. Neurolymphomatosis was prominent at the segments of C6-Th2. Combined loss of axons and myelin sheaths was observed in the cervical nerve roots and posterior columns. Lymphoma cells also invaded the cranial nerves. The subarachnoid and perivascular spaces of the brain demonstrated focal invasion of the lymphoma. Mass lesions were not observed in the central nervous system. The lymphoma cells did not show histological transformation to higher grades, and the density of the centroblasts remained at grade 2. Our report clarifies that low-grade follicular lymphoma can manifest as neurolymphomatosis and central nervous system invasion in the absence of transformation toward higher histological grades. FDG-PET may be more sensitive to non-mass-forming lesions, including neurolymphomatosis, than gadolinium-contrast MRI.

A case report of secondary neurolymphomatosis showing selective nerve infiltration and massive lumbar plexus enlargement

Background

Neurolymphomatosis (NL) is a rare manifestation of malignant lymphoma that shows selective infiltration to the peripheral nervous system primarily or secondarily. We report a patient with secondary NL caused by germinal center B-cell (GCB)-type diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) who showed selective infiltration of the lumbar plexus to the spinal cord and massive nerve enlargement resulting in severe pain.

Case presentation

A 72-year-old female exhibited asymmetric motor and sensory impairments and pain in the lower limbs that progressed for five months. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) showed an enlarged lumbar plexus, which continued to the cauda equina via the L3 and L4 spinal nerves. Her symptoms gradually worsened. Ten months after the onset of symptoms, the enlarged cauda equina filled the spinal canal space, and the spinal cord was swollen. A cauda equina biopsy was performed, and she was diagnosed with GCB-type DLBCL with CD10 positivity. The primary tumor was found in a mammary cyst. The autopsy study did not show apparent infiltration, except in the nervous system.

Conclusions

Although there are many neurologic phenotypes of malignant lymphoma, the association between the cytological characteristics of lymphoma and the neurological phenotypes is still unclear. Several reports of CD10-positive secondary NL are available, whereas peripheral or central nervous tissue origin lymphoma cases are mostly negative for CD10. CD10 staining may be useful for distinguishing primary NL from secondary NL. NL often has a strong organotropism for peripheral nervous tissue, which makes early diagnosis challenging.

Supplementary Information

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12883-021-02330-5.

The broad landscape of follicular lymphoma: Part II

Follicular lymphoma is a neoplasm derived from follicle center B cells, typically both centrocytes and centroblasts, in variable proportions according to the lymphoma grading. The pattern of growth may be entirely follicular, follicular and diffuse and rarely completely diffuse. It represents the second most common non-Hodgkin lymphoma, after diffuse large B-cell lymphoma and it is the most common low-grade mature B-cell lymphoma in Western countries. In the majority of cases, follicular lymphoma is a nodal tumor, occurring in adults and is frequently associated with the translocation t(14;18)(q32;q21)/IGH-BCL2. However, in recent years the spectrum of follicular lymphoma has expanded and small subsets of follicular lymphoma, which differ from common follicular lymphoma, have been identified and included in the current 2017 WHO classification. The aim of our review is to describe the broad spectrum of follicular lymphoma, pointing out that the identification of distinct clinicopathological variants of follicular lymphoma is relevant for the patient outcomes and treatment.

A case of neurolymphomatosis caused by follicular lymphoma successfully treated with bendamustine

Currently, there is no standard treatment for neurolymphomatosis because of the scarcity of clinical studies. Here, we report the successful treatment of neurolymphomatosis caused by follicular lymphoma with bendamustine, which could be an effective treatment option for this condition.