Intracranial reticulum cell sarcoma associated with immunoglobulin A deficiency

A case is reported of a 46 year old woman who died after a five month illness characterized by focal neurological signs, evidence of meningeal irritation, and the finding of `blast' cells in the CSF. Immunoglobulin A was consistently absent from her serum and secretions. Necropsy showed extensive infiltration by a reticulum-cell sarcoma of the subarachnoid space, with tumour nodules on several cranial nerves and tumour infiltration of the tuber cinereum. The significance of the association between immunoglobulin A deficiency and neoplasia is discussed.