Surgical resection versus biopsy in the treatment of primary central nervous system lymphoma: a systematic review and meta-analysis

PURPOSE: Despite the improvement in treatment and prognosis of primary central nervous system lymphoma (PCNSL) over the last decades, the 5-year survival rate is approximately 30%; thus, new therapeutic approaches are needed to improve patient survival. The study’s aim was to evaluate the role of surgical resection of PCNSL. METHODS: Primary outcomes were the overall survival (OS) and progression-free survival (PFS) of patients with PCNSL who underwent surgical resection versus biopsy alone. The meta-analysis was conducted to calculate pooled hazard ratios (HRs) under a random-effects model for the time-to-event variables. The odds ratios (ORs) were calculated for binary, secondary outcome parameters. RESULTS: Seven studies (n = 1046) were included. We found that surgical resection was associated with significantly better OS (HR 0.63 [95% CI 0.51–0.77]) when compared with biopsy. PFS was also significantly improved (HR 0.64 [95% CI 0.49–0.85]) in patients who underwent resection compared with those who underwent biopsy. The heterogeneity for OS and PFS was low (I2 = 7% and 24%, respectively). We also found that patients who underwent biopsy more often had multiple (OR 0.38 [95% CI 0.19–0.79]) or deep-seated (OR 0.20 [95% CI 0.12–0.34]) lesions compared with those who underwent surgical resection. There were no significant differences in chemotherapy or radiotherapy use or the occurrence of postoperative complications between the two groups. CONCLUSION: In selected patients, surgical resection of PCNSL is associated with significantly better overall survival and progression-free survival compared with biopsy alone. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s11060-022-04200-7.