CARMOFUR-INDUCED LEUKAENCEPHALOPATHY - MRI

Carmofur, a derivative of 5-fluorouracil, has recently been noted to h ave an infrequent but serious association with leukoencephalopathy. To our knowledge, there has been no report of early MRI findings in this leukoencephalopathy. We describe a case in which diffuse high signal intensity of the entire cerebral white matter, including the corpus ca llosum, was seen on T2-weighted magnetic resonance images. Although si milar findings can be seen in many other diseases, carmofur-induced le ukoencephalopathy should be suspected in a patient treated with carmof ur. It is important to know the clinical and MRI characteristics of th is condition, for early diagnosis and better prognosis.