Background/aim: The purpose of this study was to retrospectively review the outcomes of intramedullary spinal cord metastasis (ISCM) and identify predictors for ambulation after radiotherapy (RT).
Patients and methods: We analyzed 16 lesions in 15 patients treated with RT for ISCM at our clinic from October 2009 to April 2020 to evaluate predictors for improved ambulation following RT.
Results: The primary diseases included nine cases of lung cancer, two cases of breast cancer, and several others. The RT schedule was primarily 30 Gy/10 fractions in seven cases, while others were applied to nine cases. The median overall survival time was 99 days. After RT, all seven patients who could walk prior to RT were still able to walk (100%), whereas only two of nine patients who could not walk prior to RT were able to walk (22%, p=0.004).
Conclusion: Ambulation prior to RT was a significant predictor of ambulation ability after RT.
Keywords: Intramedullary spinal cord metastasis; ambulation; central nervous system; prognosis; radiotherapy.
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