Thiotepa intrathecal injections for myelomatous central nervous system involvement

Revisiting intrathecal thiotepa: Efficacy and safety in secondary CNS malignancies

Treating metastatic malignancies to the central nervous system (CNS) is challenging because many drugs cannot cross the blood-brain-barrier (BBB). Direct intrathecal (IT) drug administration into the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) is a strategy to overcome this problem. Thiotepa has effective CNS penetration but its popularity has waned over the last two decades due to concerns about its efficacy and potential systemic toxicity. This review evaluates the available evidence for the use of IT thiotepa in hematologic malignancies and non-CNS solid tumors with leptomeningeal disease metastases (LMD). Our search shows that IT thiotepa is a reasonable alternative in hematologic malignancies and LMD due to solid organ malignancies. This suggests a potential role of IT thiotepa in second-or third-line treatment or a substitute role in cases of drug-shortages and adverse effects with other agents. Future research should focus on rigorous comparative trials to establish its definitive role in the evolving landscape of CNS-directed chemotherapy.

Imaging findings in a case of leptomeningeal myelomatosis, a rare but critical central nervous system complication of multiple myeloma

Leptomeningeal myelomatosis is a rare complication of multiple myeloma (<1% of the patients). There was an increase in the incidence of leptomeningeal myelomatosis during the last decade; the prognosis of leptomeningeal myelomatosis remains poor, (overall median survival from the time of diagnosis of 2 months). We discuss a rare case of a monoclonal gammopathy evolving into multiple myeloma and finally into a rapidly progressing leptomeningeal disease. A 76 year-old woman in hematologic follow-up for advanced stage multiple myeloma in sixth-line treatment had an episode of generalized tonic-clonic seizure with sphincter release followed by altered state of consciousness. The unenhanced head CT scan showed a mild enlargement of the ventricular system without intra-axial or extra-axial hemorrhages nor significant changes in brain parenchyma. The subsequent contrast-enhanced brain MRI revealed a widespread nodular leptomeningeal enhancement characterized by contrast-enhancement of the pia mater extended into the subarachnoid spaces of the sulci and cisterns, involving supra- and sub-tentorial regions and the statoacoustic nerve in the inner ear canal bilaterally. The fluid-attenuated inversion recovery MRI images demonstrated an abnormally elevated signal within the sulci in the parieto-occipital regions. The radiological diagnosis of leptomeningeal myelomatosis was made. The patient died 4 days after the examination. In patients with long-lasting multiple myeloma and onset of neurological signs or symptoms, a contrast-enhanced brain MRI should be performed to assess the actual burden of central nervous system involvement in leptomeningeal myelomatosis; CT may provide a clue to the diagnosis when progressive enlargement of the ventricles over time is noted.

Case reports: Central nervous system involvement in patients with newly diagnosed multiple myeloma

Multiple myeloma with central nervous system involvement (CNS-MM) is rare, having a poor outcome and occurring in newly diagnosed or relapsed/refractory patients. The current report concerns 3 cases of newly diagnosed MM patients who presented with skull-derived plasmacytomas. Case 1 was a 54-year-old female patient with immunoglobulin D (IgD) subtype who developed extramedullary lesions from the sphenoid and occipital bones and the sphenoid sinus. Cases 2 and 3 had IgA subtype with left or bilateral frontal area lesions. Case 1 was treated with bortezomib, cyclophosphamide and dexamethasone (VCD) as the initial chemotherapy regimen and with bortezomib, lenalidomide, pegylated liposomal doxorubicin and dexamethasone (DVD-R) as the second line regimen. Whole-brain irradiation and intrathecal injection were given but the patient died within 9 months due to disease progression. Case 2 was treated with bortezomib, lenalidomide and dexamethasone (VRD) and received autologous hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (auto-HSCT) with a conditioning regimen of cyclophosphamide, etoposide and melphalan (CEM). Case 3 received DVD-R initially and auto-HSCT with a conditioning regimen of busulfan, cyclophosphamide, and etoposide (BuCyE). Cases 2 and 3 survived until the last follow-up more than 3 years later. Auto-HSCT with modified conditioning regimen as consolidation therapy improved the prognosis of CNS-MM.

A Case Report of Leptomeningeal Myelomatosis and Rapid Improvement with Regimen Consisting of Daratumumab, Pomalidomide, Vincristine, Procarbazine, and Dexamethasone

Central nervous system (CNS) involvement in multiple myeloma (MM) (MM-CNS) in the form of leptomeningeal myelomatosis or brain parenchyma plasmacytoma is rare, causing challenges in clinical diagnosis and treatment. We would like to report a case of leptomeningeal myelomatosis and illustrated the challeges. A 61-year-old man was diagnosed with MM with left paravertebral plasmacytoma, R-ISS II with high suspicion of double-hit MM, either biallelic aberrancy of TP53 or del(17p) and IGH aberrancy depending on the definition chosen, treated with lenalidomide-bortezomib-dexamethasone and local radiotherapy, later developed systemic relapse and progression to MM-CNS in the form of leptomeningeal myelomatosis. A modified CNS-based treatment not reported before, consisting of daratumumab, pomalidomide, vincristine, procarbazine, and dexamethasone, brought a rapid clinical improvement and warrants a further study. Incorporation of intrathecal thiotepa into the regimen would likely increase the efficacy.