Neurological Recovery in 14 Cats With Epidural Lymphoma Treated With Chemotherapy

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the rate and timing of neurological recovery in cats with epidural lymphoma who were treated with chemotherapy. The study included cats with various degrees of neurological impairment, confirmed diagnosis of lymphoma and spinal cord involvement. At the start of treatment, of the 14 cats diagnosed with lymphoma, 14.3% (n = 2) had ambulatory paraparesis, 14.3% (n = 2) had non-ambulatory paraparesis, 7.1% (n = 1) paraplegia with deep nociception, 50% (n = 7) were paraplegic with absent deep nociception and 14.3% (n = 2) had non-ambulatory tetraparesis. The chemotherapy treatment given was COP in 10 cats, COP and CHOP in 2 cats and CHOP in 2 cats. The number of chemotherapy sessions needed for neurological recovery varied from 1 to 4, with a total of 1-13 sessions per cat. The rate of neurological recovery was satisfactory in 83.3% (10/12) of the cats. This study indicates that cats with epidural lymphoma treated with chemotherapy have an 83.3% likelihood of partial neurological recovery and a 50% chance of full neurological recovery within a period of 7-28 days, regardless of the level of neurological impairment.