Paraneoplastic syndromes are a group of rare degenerative disorders that are triggered by a person's immune system response to a neoplasm, or cancerous tumor. Neurologic paraneoplastic syndromes are believed to occur when cancer-fighting antibodies or white blood cells known as T cells mistakenly attack normal cells in the nervous system. These disorders typically affect middle-aged to older persons and are most common in persons with lung, ovarian, lymphatic, or breast cancer. Neurologic symptoms generally develop over a period of days to weeks and usually occur prior to tumor detection, which can complicate diagnosis. These symptoms may include difficulty in walking and/or swallowing, loss of muscle tone, loss of fine motor coordination, slurred speech, memory loss, vision problems, sleep disturbances, dementia, seizures, sensory loss in the limbs, and vertigo. Neurologic paraneoplastic syndromes include Lambert-Eaton myasthenic syndrome, stiff-person syndrome, encephalomyelitis (inflammation of the brain and spinal cord), myasthenia gravis, cerebellar degeneration, limbic and/or brainstem encephalitis, neuromyotonia, and opsoclonus (involving eye movement) and sensory neuropathy.
American Autoimmune Related Diseases Association 22100 Gratiot Avenue Eastpointe, MI 48201-2227 aarda@aarda.org http://www.aarda.org Tel: 586-776-3900 800-598-4668 Fax: 586-776-3903 |
National Cancer Institute (NCI) National Institutes of Health, DHHS 6116 Executive Boulevard, Ste. 3036A, MSC 8322 Bethesda, MD 20892-8322 cancergovstaff@mail.nih.gov http://cancer.gov Tel: 800-4-CANCER (422-6237) 800-332-8615 (TTY) |
American Cancer Society National Home Office 250 Williams Street, NW Atlanta, GA 30303-1002 http://www.cancer.org Tel: 800-ACS-2345 (227-2345) |
National Organization for Rare Disorders (NORD) P.O. Box 1968 (55 Kenosia Avenue) Danbury, CT 06813-1968 orphan@rarediseases.org http://www.rarediseases.org Tel: 203-744-0100 Voice Mail 800-999-NORD (6673) Fax: 203-798-2291 |
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Last updated February 14, 2007