Evidence map›Paper›PMID 37942046›Full record

ArticleAME case reports2023

Unusual paraneoplastic syndromes in pancreatic cancer: a case report of Lambert-Eaton myasthenic syndrome (LEMS) associated with intraductal papillary mucinous cancer of the pancreas.

Athanasios Zamparas, Torsten Herzog, Sarah Förster, Ines Siglienti, Waldemar Uhl, Johanna Strotmann, Philipp Höhn

Open access · diamondAbstract readCase Reports
In one paragraph

Article in AME case reports, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
0.2field-weighted citation impact, top 41% 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

1 citing paper in PubMed, 1 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Article
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

7 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.

Athanasios ZamparasDepartment of General and Visceral Surgery, St. Josef-Hospital Bochum, Ruhr University Bochum, Bochum, Germany.
Torsten HerzogDepartment of General and Visceral Surgery, St. Josef-Hospital Bochum, Ruhr University Bochum, Bochum, Germany.
Sarah FörsterInstitute of Pathology, Ruhr University Bochum, Bochum, Germany.
Ines SiglientiDepartment of Neurology, St. Josef-Hospital Bochum, Ruhr University Bochum, Bochum, Germany.
Waldemar UhlDepartment of General and Visceral Surgery, St. Josef-Hospital Bochum, Ruhr University Bochum, Bochum, Germany.
Johanna StrotmannDepartment of General and Visceral Surgery, St. Josef-Hospital Bochum, Ruhr University Bochum, Bochum, Germany.
Philipp HöhnDepartment of General and Visceral Surgery, St. Josef-Hospital Bochum, Ruhr University Bochum, Bochum, Germany.
Ruhr University Bochum · DESt. Josef-Hospital · DE

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Background: Lambert-Eaton myasthenic syndrome (LEMS) is an autoimmune disorder of the neuromuscular junction. It can occur as a paraneoplastic disorder associated with various types of carcinomas, usually small cell lung cancer or as an autoimmune disease. LEMS can be misdiagnosed as myasthenia gravis or as an oncological sequela, causing delays in diagnosis. We present a rare case of a male adult with confirmed LEMS occurring with pancreatic carcinoma. Case Description: A 66-year-old man presented with a newly diagnosed pancreatic tumor. He had been experiencing weakness and fatigue in his lower extremities since the summer of 2020. Over time, the weakness progressed to include his proximal upper extremity muscles. Dysphonia, dysarthria, decreased appetite and significant weight loss were also observed. A computed tomography (CT) scan revealed a 3 cm locally resectable cystic tumor in the pancreatic head. Blood tests showed elevated carbohydrate antigen 19-9 (CA19-9) and carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) levels. A Whipple procedure was performed, which revealed a poorly differentiated pancreatic adenocarcinoma inside an intraductal pancreatic mucinous neoplasm. Postoperatively, the patient was admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU) because he had no spontaneous breathing and manifested areflexia signs. A train of four (TOF) monitoring of peripheral nerve stimulation was performed and pyridostigmine therapy was initiated, leading to an improvement in symptoms allowing the extubation and transfer to the peripheral ward. Further diagnostic tests revealed a LEMS and an intravenous therapy with cumulative 100 g immunoglobulin (Ig) G was initiated. Upon discharge, 10 days after starting LEMS treatment, the patient showed subjective and objective improvement in strength. Conclusions: Paraneoplastic syndromes are more common than expected, but rare in pancreatic adenocarcinoma. They can appear before abdominal symptoms, facilitating early diagnosis. Successful treatment of cancer may eliminate paraneoplastic symptoms. LEMS may reveal pancreatic cancer. Early recognition of paraneoplastic syndromes is important for pancreatic cancer management. Further investigation is needed to evaluate the diagnostic approach for LEMS in all patients with pancreatic cancer.

Indexed as

case reportLambert-Eaton syndromePancreatic cancerparaneoplastic syndromes (PNS)

Identifiers

PMID37942046
PMCPMC10628391
OpenAlexW4387710889

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY-NC-ND
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Registered trials

None linked

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.