Niigata, Japan – A group led by the Department of Neurosurgery at the Brain Research Institute, Niigata University, has successfully diagnosed ten primary central nervous system lymphoma (PCNSL) patients who had difficult-to-access lesions in or around the brainstem, or were too frail to receive surgical biopsies. Hotspot MYD88 L265P mutations were detected from circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) collected from lumbar taps in all patients.
A team led by Dr. Manabu Natsumeda successfully treated the patients after diagnosis by liquid biopsy, and surgical biopsies were not performed. “At present, surgical biopsy is the gold standard for diagnosis of PCNSL. However, this method is a potential game changer for the diagnosis of PCNSL in patients with difficult-to-access lesions or who are too frail to receive surgical biopsies, as we found the method to be very reliable.” explains Dr. Natsumeda. The case report was published online in the journal Neurooncology Advances on January 12, 2026.
Neuro-Oncology Advances
Treatment initiation by positive liquid biopsy alone in primary central nervous system lymphoma: a retrospective analysis of a multi-institutional study
12-Jan-2026