| Abstract: |
(from the chapter) Primary central nervous system lymphoma (PCNSL) is a relatively rare non-Hodgkin's lymphoma that arises within the CNS. Until recently, it accounted for only 1% of all primary brain tumors, but its incidence increased threefold in immunocompetent populations from 1988 to the time of writing (Eby et al, 1988). With a median age at diagnosis of 60 years (Peterson & DeAngelis, 1997), PCNSL is a disease of middle and late adult life, and it is slightly more common in males (O'Neill & Illig, 1989). It is an infiltrative tumor most often located in the periventricular region and subcortical gray matter (Grant & Isaacson, 1992). Leptomeningeal involvement is present in approximately one-third of patients at diagnosis (Peterson & DeAngelis, 1997), and the eye is another site of multifocal CNS involvement in about 25% of patients (Peterson et al, 1993). On neuroimaging studies, PCNSL is identified as contrast-enhancing in 90% of cases, and multifocal lesions occur in approximately 40% of patients (DeAngelis, 1995). (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved). |
