RT Journal Article
SR Electronic
T1 THE WIDENING SPECTRUM OF PARANEOPLASTIC DISORDERS: TWO CASES
JF Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery & Psychiatry
JO J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry
FD BMJ Publishing Group Ltd
SP e4
OP e4
DO 10.1136/jnnp-2014-309236.194
VO 85
IS 10
A1 Adrian Pace
A1 Sonali Dharia
A1 Nicholas Gutowski
YR 2014
UL http://jnnp.bmj.com/content/85/10/e4.106.abstract
AB Paraneoplastic neurological syndromes are non-metastatic disorders triggered by an altered immune response to a neoplasm. Uncommon presentations are increasingly reported, widening the recognised spectrum of these disorders. We present two patients with atypical neurological manifestations that heralded malignancy. Case 1 A 79 year old woman presented with progressive asymmetrical (R>L) leg weakness. Examination confirmed significant paraparesis (MRC 2/5 bilaterally) with normal muscle bulk and tone, normal sensation and sphincter control, hyporeflexia and downgoing plantars. MRI of the lumbosacral spine was normal. Nerve conduction studies showed an axonal and demyelinating motor neuropathy. CSF was acellular with high protein (2.5 gr/dl) and normal glucose. Body CT revealed a large retrosternal mass consistent with thymoma. Her paraneoplastic motor neuropathy was treated with intravenous immunoglobulin, which clinically stabilised her progression, and referred for surgical removal. Case 2 A 72 year old woman presented with painless, progressive left-sided visual loss. Fundoscopy excluded arterial occlusion or vasculitis. Investigations for autoimmune or infective causes were normal. Chest X-ray, echocardiogram, lumbar puncture and a temporal artery biopsy were diagnostically non-contributory. Body CT showed multiple lytic and sclerotic bone lesions, with abnormal lymphadenopathy in the left axilla. Fine needle aspiration of a node showed adenocarcinoma consistent with metastatic oestrogen receptor positive breast cancer. The final diagnosis was non-metastatic paraneoplastic optic neuropathy.