Malignancy-related hydrocephalus: clinical features and results of ventricular peritoneal shunt procedure in three patients.

Three patients with hydrocephalus secondary to central nervous system (CNS) metastases from lung or breast cancer are reviewed representing less than 5% of patients with CNS metastases seen at The Cancer Center of Boston over a 10-year period. The clinical picture is characterized by ataxia and mental confusion with dilated ventriculi on computed tomography (CT) scan of the brain. Computerized tomography of the brain and microscopic analysis of the cerebrospinal fluid are complementary in establishing the diagnosis of meningeal carcinomatosis. Surgical management by ventricular peritoneal shunt is an important component to multimodality therapy. The clinical course and extended survival in three patients provides a basis for recommending palliative surgical bypass as a therapeutic intervention with or without intrathecal chemotherapy, radiation, or both.