Eculizumab as a promising treatment in thymoma-associated myasthenia gravis

Valentina Vélez-Santamaría; Velina Nedkova; Laura Díez; Christian Homedes; M Antonia Alberti; Carlos Casasnovas

doi:10.1177/1756286420932035

Eculizumab as a promising treatment in thymoma-associated myasthenia gravis

Ther Adv Neurol Disord. 2020 Jul 1:13:1756286420932035. doi: 10.1177/1756286420932035. eCollection 2020.

Authors

Valentina Vélez-Santamaría¹, Velina Nedkova², Laura Díez², Christian Homedes², M Antonia Alberti², Carlos Casasnovas³

Affiliations

¹ Neurometabolic Diseases Group, Bellvitge Biomedical Research Institute (IDIBELL), Barcelona, Spain, and Neurology Department, Bellvitge University Hospital, Barcelona, Spain.
² Neurology Department, Bellvitge University Hospital, Barcelona, Spain.
³ Neurology Department, Neuromuscular Unit, Bellvitge University Hospital, n/n Feixa Llarga street, L'Hospitalet de Llobregat, Barcelona, 08906, Spain.

Abstract

Myasthenia gravis is a chronic autoimmune disorder caused by antibodies directed against the neuromuscular junction. Some patients may have an associated thymoma, which confers a worse prognosis. Eculizumab, a monoclonal antibody that inhibits the activation of terminal complement, has recently been approved for the treatment of refractory generalized myasthenia gravis. This is an early case report of thymoma-associated refractory myasthenia gravis successfully treated with eculizumab in a real-world setting.

Keywords: case report; complement inhibitor; eculizumab; myasthenia gravis; refractory; thymoma.

Publication types

Case Reports