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Paraneoplastic neuropathies and peripheral nerve hyperexcitability disorders
Shahar Shelly1, Divyanshu Dubey2, John R Mills3
1Department of Neurology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, United States; Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, United States; Department of Neurology, Rambam Health Care Campus, Haifa, Israel; Faculty of Medicine, Bruce Rappaport Faculty of Medicine, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel.
Paraneoplastic neuropathies, often the first sign of cancer, cause varied symptoms like weakness and pain. Identifying specific antibodies aids cancer detection and guides treatment for these serious neurological disorders.
Area of Science:
- Neurology
- Immunology
- Oncology
Background:
- Peripheral neuropathy is a frequent neurological referral, with paraneoplastic neuropathies representing a severe subgroup.
- Symptoms are diverse, including weakness, sensory loss, autonomic dysfunction, and neuropathic pain, often preceding malignancy diagnosis.
- Immune targets in paraneoplastic neuropathies can be on neural cell surfaces or within cells, influencing treatment outcomes.
Conclusions:
- Specific autoantibodies are crucial biomarkers for paraneoplastic neuropathies, aiding early cancer detection.
- Understanding antibody targets and expression patterns (cell surface vs. intracellular) informs prognosis and treatment.
- Paraneoplastic neuropathies share features with idiopathic disorders, necessitating comprehensive diagnostic evaluation.
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