You are here

Article Text

Article menu
Download PDFPDF
Case Reports: Rare disease
Chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy caused by hepatocellular carcinoma
  1. Tedy Sawma1,
  2. Mariam Kanso1,
  3. Jawad Khalife2 and
  4. Mohammad Khalife1
  1. 1Department of Surgery, American University of Beirut Medical Center, Beirut, Lebanon
  2. 2Department of Neurosurgery, Johns Hopkins Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
  1. Correspondence to Dr Mohammad Khalife; mk12{at}aub.edu.lb

Abstract

Paraneoplastic syndromes are rare abnormal endocrine or immune responses triggered by neoplasms. Chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy (CIDP) is one such example. CIDP is an acquired, immune-mediated neuropathy affecting the peripheral nerves and nerve roots. It is associated with many types of cancers, especially haematological malignancies. We report the case of a man in his 60s who presented to the emergency department with acute symptoms of upper and lower extremity paresis and decreased sensation in the toes and tips of his fingers. Laboratory tests were normal. Electrodiagnostic studies showed diffuse motor and sensory dysfunction in all extremities; a diagnosis of CIDP was consequently made. Imaging studies showed a large left lobe liver mass. Subsequent biopsy revealed histopathological findings characteristic of hepatocellular carcinoma. After failure of medical treatment with intravenous immunoglobulin and corticosteroids, laparoscopic resection of the tumour was planned, performed and resulted in complete resolution of symptoms. At 18 months postoperatively, the patient was asymptomatic.

  • surgery
  • peripheral nerve disease
  • liver disease

https://doi.org/10.1136/bcr-2022-251770

Statistics from Altmetric.com

    Request Permissions

    If you wish to reuse any or all of this article please use the link below which will take you to the Copyright Clearance Center’s RightsLink service. You will be able to get a quick price and instant permission to reuse the content in many different ways.

    View Full Text

    Footnotes

    • Contributors This work was conducted by the following authors who had all substantial contributions to the study: TS, MKa, JK and MKh. Specifically, TS searched the literature and collected the data (imaging, pathology slides and surgical specimens). TS and MKa drafted the case report. JK and MKh reviewed the article for critical content. MKh performed the surgery and followed up with the patient.

    • Funding The authors have not declared a specific grant for this research from any funding agency in the public, commercial or not-for-profit sectors.

    • Case reports provide a valuable learning resource for the scientific community and can indicate areas of interest for future research. They should not be used in isolation to guide treatment choices or public health policy.

    • Competing interests None declared.

    • Provenance and peer review Not commissioned; externally peer reviewed.