Anti-NMDAR-Positive Small-Cell Lung Cancer Paraneoplastic Limbic Encephalitis: A Case Report and Literature Review

Introduction. Paraneoplastic limbic encephalitis (PLE) is a rare disease that presents as rapid onset dementia characterized by short-term memory loss (STM), anxiety, and behavioral changes. Anti-NMDAR antibodies are unfrequently reported in PLE associated with small-cell lung cancer (SCLC). Given t...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Raman Sohal, Steven H. Adams, Vishal Phogat, Abha Harish, Carlos Ynigo D. Lopez, Michael P. A. Williams, Kamal K. Khurana, Basel Abuzuaiter, Nia Jagroop, Bhavya Narapureddy
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Wiley 2020-01-01
Series:Case Reports in Neurological Medicine
Online Access:http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2020/5269352
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1832560195662774272
author Raman Sohal
Steven H. Adams
Vishal Phogat
Abha Harish
Carlos Ynigo D. Lopez
Michael P. A. Williams
Kamal K. Khurana
Basel Abuzuaiter
Nia Jagroop
Bhavya Narapureddy
author_facet Raman Sohal
Steven H. Adams
Vishal Phogat
Abha Harish
Carlos Ynigo D. Lopez
Michael P. A. Williams
Kamal K. Khurana
Basel Abuzuaiter
Nia Jagroop
Bhavya Narapureddy
author_sort Raman Sohal
collection DOAJ
description Introduction. Paraneoplastic limbic encephalitis (PLE) is a rare disease that presents as rapid onset dementia characterized by short-term memory loss (STM), anxiety, and behavioral changes. Anti-NMDAR antibodies are unfrequently reported in PLE associated with small-cell lung cancer (SCLC). Given that PLE can precede the diagnosis of cancer, it is very important that once infectious, metabolic, nutritional, or structural disorders associated with short-term memory loss are ruled out that vigorous effort must be made to rule out underlying malignancy. Case. We report a rare case of PLE as the presenting symptom of SCLC. A 72-year-old male with history of COPD was brought to the ED by his wife after he was found to have short-term memory loss, including forgetfulness of his wedding anniversary the day before, and anxiety. Neurological exam showed impaired short-term recall on MOCA. CT head showed no evidence of infarct. Lumbar puncture was performed which showed lymphocytic pleocytosis, a nonspecific inflammatory change. CSF panel was negative for HSV, Neisseria, Hemophilus, E. coli, and HIV. Initial EEG was unremarkable, though a repeat EEG showed mild slowing of the posterior dominant rhythm consistent with mild encephalopathy. MRI showed equivocal increased FLAIR on T2-weighted images in the bilateral temporal lobes, left greater than right. CTA thorax showed bulky mediastinal and right hilar LAD. FNA of the R4 lymph node revealed SCLC. The NM bone scan showed no osteoblastic lesions. While the serum autoantibody panel was positive for anti-NMDAR, the CSF autoantibody panel returned entirely negative. Chemotherapy with etoposide and cisplatin was started on Day 4 of admission. The patient’s neurological symptoms showed improvement following chemotherapy. Conclusion. This case highlights the importance of recognizing short-term memory loss as a feature of PLE.
format Article
id doaj-art-91db6902349a4c14a82604f35ea47593
institution Kabale University
issn 2090-6668
2090-6676
language English
publishDate 2020-01-01
publisher Wiley
record_format Article
series Case Reports in Neurological Medicine
spelling doaj-art-91db6902349a4c14a82604f35ea475932025-02-03T01:28:10ZengWileyCase Reports in Neurological Medicine2090-66682090-66762020-01-01202010.1155/2020/52693525269352Anti-NMDAR-Positive Small-Cell Lung Cancer Paraneoplastic Limbic Encephalitis: A Case Report and Literature ReviewRaman Sohal0Steven H. Adams1Vishal Phogat2Abha Harish3Carlos Ynigo D. Lopez4Michael P. A. Williams5Kamal K. Khurana6Basel Abuzuaiter7Nia Jagroop8Bhavya Narapureddy9Department of Medicine, SUNY Upstate Medical University Hospital, 750 E Adams St., Syracuse, NY 13210, USADepartment of Pathology, SUNY Upstate Medical University Hospital, 750 E Adams St., Syracuse, NY 13210, USADepartment of Medicine, SUNY Upstate Medical University Hospital, 750 E Adams St., Syracuse, NY 13210, USADepartment of Medicine, SUNY Upstate Medical University Hospital, 750 E Adams St., Syracuse, NY 13210, USADepartment of Neurology, SUNY Upstate Medical University Hospital, 750 E Adams St., Syracuse, NY 13210, USADepartment of Pathology, SUNY Upstate Medical University Hospital, 750 E Adams St., Syracuse, NY 13210, USADepartment of Pathology, SUNY Upstate Medical University Hospital, 750 E Adams St., Syracuse, NY 13210, USADepartment of Medicine, SUNY Upstate Medical University Hospital, 750 E Adams St., Syracuse, NY 13210, USADepartment of Medicine, SUNY Upstate Medical University Hospital, 750 E Adams St., Syracuse, NY 13210, USADepartment of Neurology, SUNY Upstate Medical University Hospital, 750 E Adams St., Syracuse, NY 13210, USAIntroduction. Paraneoplastic limbic encephalitis (PLE) is a rare disease that presents as rapid onset dementia characterized by short-term memory loss (STM), anxiety, and behavioral changes. Anti-NMDAR antibodies are unfrequently reported in PLE associated with small-cell lung cancer (SCLC). Given that PLE can precede the diagnosis of cancer, it is very important that once infectious, metabolic, nutritional, or structural disorders associated with short-term memory loss are ruled out that vigorous effort must be made to rule out underlying malignancy. Case. We report a rare case of PLE as the presenting symptom of SCLC. A 72-year-old male with history of COPD was brought to the ED by his wife after he was found to have short-term memory loss, including forgetfulness of his wedding anniversary the day before, and anxiety. Neurological exam showed impaired short-term recall on MOCA. CT head showed no evidence of infarct. Lumbar puncture was performed which showed lymphocytic pleocytosis, a nonspecific inflammatory change. CSF panel was negative for HSV, Neisseria, Hemophilus, E. coli, and HIV. Initial EEG was unremarkable, though a repeat EEG showed mild slowing of the posterior dominant rhythm consistent with mild encephalopathy. MRI showed equivocal increased FLAIR on T2-weighted images in the bilateral temporal lobes, left greater than right. CTA thorax showed bulky mediastinal and right hilar LAD. FNA of the R4 lymph node revealed SCLC. The NM bone scan showed no osteoblastic lesions. While the serum autoantibody panel was positive for anti-NMDAR, the CSF autoantibody panel returned entirely negative. Chemotherapy with etoposide and cisplatin was started on Day 4 of admission. The patient’s neurological symptoms showed improvement following chemotherapy. Conclusion. This case highlights the importance of recognizing short-term memory loss as a feature of PLE.http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2020/5269352
spellingShingle Raman Sohal
Steven H. Adams
Vishal Phogat
Abha Harish
Carlos Ynigo D. Lopez
Michael P. A. Williams
Kamal K. Khurana
Basel Abuzuaiter
Nia Jagroop
Bhavya Narapureddy
Anti-NMDAR-Positive Small-Cell Lung Cancer Paraneoplastic Limbic Encephalitis: A Case Report and Literature Review
Case Reports in Neurological Medicine
title Anti-NMDAR-Positive Small-Cell Lung Cancer Paraneoplastic Limbic Encephalitis: A Case Report and Literature Review
title_full Anti-NMDAR-Positive Small-Cell Lung Cancer Paraneoplastic Limbic Encephalitis: A Case Report and Literature Review
title_fullStr Anti-NMDAR-Positive Small-Cell Lung Cancer Paraneoplastic Limbic Encephalitis: A Case Report and Literature Review
title_full_unstemmed Anti-NMDAR-Positive Small-Cell Lung Cancer Paraneoplastic Limbic Encephalitis: A Case Report and Literature Review
title_short Anti-NMDAR-Positive Small-Cell Lung Cancer Paraneoplastic Limbic Encephalitis: A Case Report and Literature Review
title_sort anti nmdar positive small cell lung cancer paraneoplastic limbic encephalitis a case report and literature review
url http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2020/5269352
work_keys_str_mv AT ramansohal antinmdarpositivesmallcelllungcancerparaneoplasticlimbicencephalitisacasereportandliteraturereview
AT stevenhadams antinmdarpositivesmallcelllungcancerparaneoplasticlimbicencephalitisacasereportandliteraturereview
AT vishalphogat antinmdarpositivesmallcelllungcancerparaneoplasticlimbicencephalitisacasereportandliteraturereview
AT abhaharish antinmdarpositivesmallcelllungcancerparaneoplasticlimbicencephalitisacasereportandliteraturereview
AT carlosynigodlopez antinmdarpositivesmallcelllungcancerparaneoplasticlimbicencephalitisacasereportandliteraturereview
AT michaelpawilliams antinmdarpositivesmallcelllungcancerparaneoplasticlimbicencephalitisacasereportandliteraturereview
AT kamalkkhurana antinmdarpositivesmallcelllungcancerparaneoplasticlimbicencephalitisacasereportandliteraturereview
AT baselabuzuaiter antinmdarpositivesmallcelllungcancerparaneoplasticlimbicencephalitisacasereportandliteraturereview
AT niajagroop antinmdarpositivesmallcelllungcancerparaneoplasticlimbicencephalitisacasereportandliteraturereview
AT bhavyanarapureddy antinmdarpositivesmallcelllungcancerparaneoplasticlimbicencephalitisacasereportandliteraturereview