Lumbo-sacral radiculopathy induced by radiation.

Two patients had lumbo-sacral radiculopathy following radiation treatment of cancer. Twenty previously reported cases were similar. The clinical picture is one of progressive motor and sensory loss in the legs, usually appearing within a year after radiation, but sometimes delayed up to several years. Experimental studies quoted indicate greater vulnerability of peripheral nerves to ionizing radiation than has been previously recognized. Lumbo-sacral radiculopathy is readily produced in the experimental animal (rat) and affords an experimental model closely resembling the human cases reported.