Primary spinal epidural non-Hodgkin{'}s lymphomas: A clinical study

Background: The spinal epidural space is an uncommon presenting site in primary non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. The occurrence of spinal epidural disease ranges from 0.1%-6.5% among patients with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. Methods: We report a retrospective study regarding 19 patients with primary epidural non- Hodgkin's lymphomas analyzing the factors influencing prognosis of this tumor, with emphasis on treatment. Result: Ten patients were females and nine males. The neurologic conditions of patients were assessed preoperatively and postoperatively according to Shaw's classification for neurologic disability. All cases underwent surgery accompanied by radiotherapy in 16 cases as well as chemotherapy in 13 cases. Histologically, the tumor proved to be a low- grade non-Hodgkin's lymphoma in three cases, intermediate-grade in four cases and, high-grade in 12 cases. At average follow-up of 7.2 years (range 5-15 years), 15 patients had died after an average interval of 31 months from treatment (range 3-130 months) and four patients are alive after an average interval of 61 months (range 32-86 months). Conclusion: It appears that the outcome in these patients depends on the gravity of preoperative deficits, whereas the survival is influenced by the type of treatment.