Multiple brain lesions in a patient with relapsed hairy cell leukemia: a case report and review of the literature
Abstract
Abstract Cerebral lesions are rare in hairy cell leukemia (HCL), and its incidence remains to be determined. Identifying the cause can be challenging. In this report, we present a case of brain lesions occurring several years after diagnosis. A 76-year-old male patient presented to the Emergency Department with confusion. He had been diagnosed with HCL in 1999 and had received five lines of treatment. Cerebral imaging revealed multiple nodular lesions, with edema and a hemorrhagic appearance. Cerebrospinal fluid tests were negative. The tumor origin was retained due to concomitant relapse (blood, lymph nodes). Despite the partial efficacy of rituximab-cladribine treatment, the patient died of Candida pneumonia. A review of the literature (PubMed, CrossRef, Google Scholar) identified seventeen cases between 1966 and 2024, with a median age of 59 years (33–80). Cladribine, with or without rituximab, was the most widely prescribed treatment regimen with a complete response rate of 57%. Four (23.5%) patients died (two from infection, one from gastrointestinal bleeding and one from an unknown cause). These atypical presentations suggest that brain imaging and advanced biological investigations should be performed to guide management.
How strong is the evidence?
Evidence Hub reads this as a case report, done in people. Its evidence level is 5 of 5 (Very low · case / narrative / animal / in vitro / in silico). Case reports, narrative reviews, and animal, cell or computer-model studies give the weakest evidence for human health.
Read the paper
Related studies
- Penicillins for Treatment of Pneumococcal Pneumonia: Does In Vitro Resistance Really Matter?
- Thiophenes—Naturally Occurring Plant Metabolites: Biological Activities and In Silico Evaluation of Their Potential as Cathepsin D Inhibitors
- Inhalable Mannosylated Rifampicin–Curcumin Co-Loaded Nanomicelles with Enhanced In Vitro Antimicrobial Efficacy for an Optimized Pulmonary Tuberculosis Therapy
- Development and validation of microbial bioassay for quantification of Levofloxacin in pharmaceutical preparations
- GC-MS Analysis and Biomedical Therapy of Oil from n-Hexane Fraction of Scutellaria edelbergii Rech. f.: In Vitro, In Vivo, and In Silico Approach
- Propranolol, chlorpromazine and diclofenac restore susceptibility of extensively drug-resistant (XDR)-Acinetobacter baumannii to fluoroquinolones
Go deeper in Evidence Hub
Evidence Hub adds a study data sheet (design, sample size, evidence level, key numbers), an AI summary and a chat grounded in the paper's text.