Practical Approach for the Management and Evaluation of Paraneoplastic Syndromes

Cureus. 2020 Dec 1;12(12):e11830. doi: 10.7759/cureus.11830.

Abstract

Paraneoplastic syndromes (PNS) are conditions linked to the presence of tumors, most often malignant, without being the direct translation of a locoregional extension or distant metastases. They affect 10% to 15% of cancer patients, can appear before, after, or simultaneously with a cancer diagnosis, and primarily affect the nervous system, endocrine glands, and skin. The main tumors that provide PNS are lung cancer, gynecological tumors, and lymphomas. The diagnostic and therapeutic approaches are very heterogeneous due to the physiopathological specificities of each type of PNS. The main advances made in recent years have focused mainly on diagnostic tools, which have become more efficient in the diagnosis of PNS and underlying cancers.

Keywords: diagnosis; endocrine syndromes; malignancy; nervous system; paraneoplastic syndromes; skin.

Publication types

  • Review