Neurolymphomatosis of Brachial Plexus in Patients with Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma

Neurolymphomatosis (NL) is a rare clinical disease where neoplastic cells invade the cranial nerves and peripheral nerve roots, plexus, or other nerves in patients with hematologic malignancy. Most NL cases are caused by B-cell non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL). Diagnosis can be made by imaging with positron emission tomography (PET) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). We experienced two cases of NL involving the brachial plexus in patients with NHL. One patient, who had NHL with central nervous system (CNS) involvement, experienced complete remission after 8 cycles of R-CHOP (rituximab, cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin, vincristine, and prednisone) chemotherapy but relapsed into NL of the brachial plexus 5 months later. The other patient, who suffered from primary central nervous system lymphoma (PCNSL), had been undergoing chemoradiotherapy but progressed to NL of the brachial plexus.