Evidence map›Paper›PMID 28946631›Full record

ArticleCancers2017

Alcohol Misuse Link to POEMS Syndrome in a Patient.

John Neary, Susan E Goodwin, Lawrence B Cohen, Manuela G Neuman

Open access · goldAbstract readCase Reports
In one paragraph

Article in Cancers, 2017. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 3 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
3citing papers in PubMed
0.2field-weighted citation impact, top 42% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

3 citing papers in PubMed, 3 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Review
  2. Article
  3. Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

4 authors at 4 institutions in 1 country.

John NearyDepartment of Medicine, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON L8N 3Z5, Canada. john.neary@medportal.ca.
Susan E GoodwinJuravinski Hospital, Hamilton, ON L8N 3Z5, Canada. fawcetts@mcmaster.ca.
Lawrence B CohenDivision of Gastroenterology, Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre and Department of Internal Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON M4N 3M5, Canada. lawrence.cohen@sunnybrook.ca.
Manuela G NeumanIn Vitro Drug Safety and Biotechnology, Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON M5G 1L5, Canada. manuela.neuman@utoronto.ca.
Health Sciences Centre · CAJuravinski Hospital · CAMcMaster University · CAUniversity of Toronto · CA

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Previously called Crow-Fukase syndrome, POEMS syndrome is characterized by poly-neuropathy, osteo-sclerotic myeloma, organomegaly, endocrinopathy, monoclonal plasma cell disorder, and skin changes. Extremely elevated levels of serum vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) are characteristic of the syndrome. Chronic hepatitis B (HBV) and C (HCV) infections can also be present in POEMS. The pathogenesis of the syndrome is not well understood. The link between chronic alcohol consumption and this malignant condition has not been reported until now. In addition, no previous study has evaluated the influence of cytokine and chemokines or viruses in the severity and evolution of POEMS.

objectives(1) to describe a heavy-alcohol user, who was diagnosed with POEMS; (2) to demonstrate the utility of quantitative measurement of serum levels of VEGF in the diagnosis of POEMS and the monitoring of therapeutic interventions; (3) to demonstrate that overproduction of pro-inflammatory cytokines is a characteristic of POEMS.

methodsWe describe a case of a POEMS patient presenting HCV and who is a heavy drinker; we compare the serum levels of cytokines and chemokines between the POEMS patient with 80 patients with HCV, 12 healthy controls, and 80 individuals with alcoholic liver disease (ALD). We quantified (ELISA pg/mL) the levels of VEGF, Interferon gamma (IFN-γ), Tumor Necrosis Factor alpha (TNF-α), Regulated-upon-Activation Normal-T-cell-Expressed and presumably-Secreted (RANTES), and Nuclear Factor kappa-B (NFκB).

resultsIn POEMS patients, VEGF levels were elevated versus control or other diseases, TNFα levels were higher versus control, but lower when compared with HCV or ALD patients. VEGF levels in POEMS patients decreased with therapeutic intervention.

conclusionsChronic alcohol misuse can be a strong risk factor to rare malignancies such as POEMS syndrome. Extreme elevation of VEGF levels is diagnostic for POEMS syndrome, and should be followed to assess response to therapy. In addition, other comorbidities should be considered individually to ensure personalized therapeutic intervention.

Indexed as

alcoholbiomarkersmalignancyPOEMSRANTESTNF-alphaVEGF

Identifiers

PMID28946631
PMCPMC5664068
OpenAlexW2759975561

What OpenQuestion holds

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LicenceCC BY
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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.