International Primary Central Nervous System Lymphoma Collaborative Group (IPCG) Study on Low-Grade Primary Central Nervous System Lymphoma in Immunocompetent Patients.

Low-grade primary central nervous system lymphoma is a very rare subtype of primary central nervous system lymphoma (PCNSL), for which almost no data is currently available. The purpose of this retrospective study was to characterize the clinical presentation, course and outcome of patients with low-grade PCNSL.

Forty patients (18 male, 22 female) from 18 cancer centers in five countries were identified with a median age of 58 (range, 19–78) years and a median Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) performance status of 1 (range, 0–4). The mean time to diagnosis was 14.8 months (range, 0.25–84). Thirty-two patients (80%) had a B-cell and eight a T-cell lymphoma. Thirty-seven patients (92.5%) showed involvement of a cerebral hemisphere or deeper brain structures, while two evidenced only leptomeningeal involvement, and one patient had spinal cord disease. Treatment was performed in 39 patients: chemotherapy and radiotherapy in 15 (38%), radiotherapy alone in 12 (30%), chemotherapy alone in 10 (25%), and tumor resection alone in two. The median progression-free survival (PFS), disease-specific survival (DSS) and overall survival (OAS) were 61.5 (range, 0–204), 130 (range, 1–204), and 79 (range, 1–204) months, respectively. An age ≥60 years was associated with a shorter PFS (P = .009), DSS (P = .015) and OAS (P = .001) in multivariate analysis.

Low-grade PCNSL differ from the high-grade subtype in pathological, clinical and radiological features. In this study, the long-term outcome was better as compared to the results obtained in PCNSL in general with age ≥60 years adversely affecting survival.