Radiation therapy for the treatment of non-eight nerve intracranial neurilemmoma

The records of 19 patients treated for intracranial neurilemmomas, other than of the eighth nerve, at the University of California, San Francisco from 1945 through 1983 were reviewed. One patient who died within 30 days following surgery was excluded from the analysis. The 5th and the 9/10/11th nerve complex were the most common sites of tumor origin. Patients were classified by the extent of surgical resection: total (90-99% resection, NTR), subtotal (less than 90% resection, STR) and biopsy. Five patients had total excision of their tumor without post-operative irradiation and none had recurred. One of the 2 patients who had STR and did not receive post-operative irradiation recurred, while 2 of the 3 patients who received post-operative irradiation following STR recurred. One of the 2 patients who had NTR and did not receive post-operative irradiation recurred, while 1 of the 3 patients who received post-operative irradiation following NTR recurred. Two patients were treated with post-operative irradiation following biopsy and one recurred. One patient was treated with planned preoperative irradiation to reduce tumor vascularity, followed by total resection. Because of the small number of patients, no firm conclusion regarding the efficacy of irradiation for non-eighth nerve intracranial neurilemmoma can be made.