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Information from PDQ for Patients
Primary central nervous system lymphoma
208/04272
** DISEASE DESCRIPTION **
This summary discusses the treatment of primary central nervous system
lymphoma.
-- Description --
Lymphoma is a disease in which cancer (malignant) cells are found in the lymph
system. The lymph system is made up of thin tubes that branch, like blood
vessels, into all parts of the body. Lymph vessels carry lymph, a colorless,
watery fluid that contains white blood cells called lymphocytes. Along the
network of vessels are groups of small, bean-shaped organs called lymph nodes.
Clusters of lymph nodes are found in the underarm, pelvis, neck, and abdomen.
The lymph nodes make and store infection-fighting cells. The spleen (an organ
in the upper abdomen that makes lymphocytes and filters old blood cells from
the blood), the thymus (a small organ beneath the breastbone), and the tonsils
(an organ in the throat) are also part of the lymph system.
Primary central nervous system (CNS) lymphoma is found in the brain and/or
spine, and has not spread to other parts of the body. This disease is often
seen in patients who have acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) or other
disorders of the immune system. Treatment is critical for patients with
primary CNS lymphoma.
Treatment for primary CNS lymphoma is more successful for patients who are able
to walk, are younger than 60 years old, and who do not have AIDS or other
disorders of the immune system. When the tumor continues to grow, it usually
does not spread beyond the CNS or the eye.
-- Treatment --
There are 3 types of treatments used for patients with primary CNS lymphoma:
- surgery (removing the cancer)
- radiation therapy (using high-dose x-rays or other high-energy rays to kill
cancer cells and shrink tumors)
- chemotherapy (using drugs to kill cancer cells and shrink tumors)
Surgery usually does not benefit the patient because CNS tumors are spread
throughout the brain and/or spine. Standard therapy for primary CNS lymphoma
is radiation therapy. Despite treatment, the lymphoma is likely to return.
Other treatment includes intrathecal chemotherapy (drugs put directly into the
brain or spinal fluid) and standard chemotherapy, with or without radiation
therapy.
High-dose radiation therapy to the brain can make it difficult for patients to
think and reason. Chemotherapy, however, given alone or before radiation
therapy may lower the risk that this will happen.
Patients who have AIDS-related primary CNS lymphoma usually have very advanced
immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infections, and are unable to survive other
infections despite receiving treatment for lymphoma. Radiation therapy (with
or without chemotherapy) appears to be most beneficial for patients who are
HIV-positive without having prior infections or tumors, and patients who have
no symptoms other than those caused by primary CNS lymphoma (refer to the PDQ
summary on AIDS-Related Lymphoma Treatment for more information).
** TO LEARN MORE **
Call
For more information, U.S. residents may call the National Cancer Institute's
(NCI's) Cancer Information Service toll-free at 1-800-4-CANCER (1-800-422-6237)
Monday through Friday from 9:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Deaf and hard-of-hearing
callers with TTY equipment may call 1-800-332-8615. The call is free and a
trained Cancer Information Specialist is available to answer your questions.
Web sites and Organizations
The NCI's Cancer.gov Web site (http://cancer.gov) provides online access to
information on cancer, clinical trials, and other Web sites and organizations
that offer support and resources for cancer patients and their families. There
are also many other places where people can get materials and information about
cancer treatment and services. Local hospitals may have information on local
and regional agencies that offer information about finances, getting to and
from treatment, receiving care at home, and dealing with problems associated
with cancer treatment.
Publications
The NCI has booklets and other materials for patients, health professionals,
and the public. These publications discuss types of cancer, methods of cancer
treatment, coping with cancer, and clinical trials. Some publications provide
information on tests for cancer, cancer causes and prevention, cancer
statistics, and NCI research activities. NCI materials on these and other
topics may be ordered online or printed directly from the NCI Publications
Locator (http://cancer.gov/publications). These materials can also be ordered
by telephone from the Cancer Information Service toll-free at 1-800-4-CANCER
(1-800-422-6237), TTY at 1-800-332-8615.
LiveHelp
The NCI's LiveHelp service, a program available on several of the Institute's
Web sites, provides Internet users with the ability to chat online with an
Information Specialist. The service is available from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Eastern time, Monday through Friday. Information Specialists can help Internet
users find information on NCI Web sites and answer questions about cancer.
Write
For more information from the NCI, please write to this address:
National Cancer Institute
Office of Communications
31 Center Drive, MSC 2580
Bethesda, MD 20892-2580
** ABOUT PDQ **
PDQ is a comprehensive cancer database available on Cancer.gov.
PDQ is the National Cancer Institute's (NCI's) comprehensive cancer information
database. Most of the information contained in PDQ is available online at
Cancer.gov (http://cancer.gov), the NCI's Web site. PDQ is provided as a
service of the NCI. The NCI is part of the National Institutes of Health, the
federal government's focal point for biomedical research.
PDQ contains cancer information summaries.
The PDQ database contains summaries of the latest published information on
cancer prevention, detection, genetics, treatment, supportive care, and
complementary and alternative medicine. Most summaries are available in two
versions. The health professional versions provide detailed information
written in technical language. The patient versions are written in
easy-to-understand, non-technical language. Both versions provide current and
accurate cancer information.
The PDQ cancer information summaries are developed by cancer experts and
reviewed regularly.
Editorial Boards made up of experts in oncology and related specialties are
responsible for writing and maintaining the cancer information summaries. The
summaries are reviewed regularly and changes are made as new information
becomes available. The date on each summary ("Date Last Modified") indicates
the time of the most recent change.
PDQ also contains information on clinical trials.
Before starting treatment, patients may want to think about taking part in a
clinical trial. A clinical trial is a study to answer a scientific question,
such as whether one treatment is better than another. Trials are based on past
studies and what has been learned in the laboratory. Each trial answers
certain scientific questions in order to find new and better ways to help
cancer patients. During treatment clinical trials, information is collected
about new treatments, the risks involved, and how well they do or do not work.
If a clinical trial shows that a new treatment is better than one currently
being used, the new treatment may become "standard."
Listings of clinical trials are included in PDQ and are available online at
Cancer.gov. Descriptions of the trials are available in health professional
and patient versions. Many cancer doctors who take part in clinical trials are
also listed in PDQ. For more information, call the Cancer Information Service
1-800-4-CANCER (1-800-422-6237); TTY at 1-800-332-8615.
Date Last Modified: 04/2002
******************************************************************************
* If you want to know more about cancer and how it is treated, or if you *
* if you wish to know about clinical trials for your type of cancer, you *
* can call the NCI's Cancer Information Service at 1-800-422-6237, toll *
* free. A trained information specialist can talk with you and answer *
* your questions. *
******************************************************************************
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