Multi-joint steroid-induced avascular necrosis in a malignant brain tumor patient.

Avascular necrosis (AVN) is a rare but serious adverse event associated with the use of corticosteroids for long durations or at high doses. This case report describes a 47-year-old female patient with low-grade astrocytoma who was initiated on low-dose dexamethasone for symptom management. The patient developed joint pain 1 year after steroid exposure, then was found to have AVN of the hip followed by multiple other joints. This case report highlights the extent to which AVN can occur in patients with brain tumors following a short course of low-dose corticosteroids. Careful evaluation of and monitoring for the development of AVN should occur frequently in patients with brain tumors given the frequent use of corticosteroids for symptom management in this population.

Diffuse midline glioma with H3 K27M-mutation in an 83-year-old woman.

Diffuse midline gliomas harboring histone H3 K27M mutations are most commonly found in the brainstem of children. This mutation confers a WHO grade IV designation and is associated with a particularly poor prognosis. Although traditionally considered to be a disease of children and young adults, a number of recent reports have described H3 K27M mutations in older adults with diffuse midline gliomas. Here, we present the unusual case of a diffuse midline glioma in the pons and cerebellum of an 83-year-old woman and review the evolving clinical literature on this entity in adults. This case underscores that it may occur even in older adults, in whom prognostic and treatment paradigms used in pediatrics may not be directly applicable.

Diffuse midline gliomas with H3 K27M mutations are a particularly aggressive form of primary glial brain tumors. They are most commonly found in children and young adults. Here, we present the unusual case of a diffuse midline glioma with H3 K27M mutation in an 83-year-old woman. To our knowledge, this is the oldest reported patient with this disease in the medical literature. We review the evolving clinical literature on this rare entity in older adults.

Ibrutinib in primary central nervous system diffuse large B-cell lymphoma.

The standard regimen for the treatment of newly diagnosed primary CNS lymphoma (PCNSL) remains regimens that contain high-dose methotrexate (MTX). While these regimens can provide control for some patients, there is a dearth of options for the treatment of patients with PCNSL who cannot tolerate MTX-containing regimens, or whose cancers are refractory to MTX. In this article, we review a promising new option; ibrutinib, a Bruton tyrosine kinase inhibitor, for patients with relapsed and refractory PCNSL.