title: Systemic and anti-neuronal auto-antibodies in patients with paraneoplastic neurological disease.
abstract: Sera from 23 patients with paraneoplastic disease of the central nervous system (PNS) were examined for the presence of anti-neuronal (anti-Hu, anti-Yo/PCA) and anti-Ri) and systemic auto-antibodies, including antibodies against DNA, centromeres, nRNP, Sm antigen, Scl-70, Ro(SS-A), La(SS-B), mitochondria, thyroid antigens, parietal calls, brush border antigen and rheumatoid factor. As controls, sera from 33 patients with small cell lung cancer, 33 with ovarian cancer and 7 with breast cancer and from 107 aged-matched healthy persons were used. Systemic auto-antibodies were found in 52% of patients with paraneoplastic neurological syndromes compared with only 16% (P = 0.001) in the control group with cancer only and 15% in the group of healthy controls. The relatively high percentage of systemic auto-antibodies in patients with PNS indicates that there is a genetic susceptibility to the development of auto-immune phenomena. This may provide an explanation for the relatively rare occurrence of PNS in patients with cancer.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neuro-oncology, Dr. Daniel den Hoed Cancer Centre, Rotterdam, Netherlands.
authors.forename: J W
authors.initials: JW
authors.lastname: Moll
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Hooijkaas
authors.forename: B C
authors.initials: BC
authors.lastname: van Goorbergh
authors.forename: L G
authors.initials: LG
authors.lastname: Roos
authors.forename: S C
authors.initials: SC
authors.lastname: Henzen-Logmans
authors.forename: C J
authors.initials: CJ
authors.lastname: Vecht
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001323:Autoantibodies / Q000032:analysis* / Q000276:immunology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009422:Nervous System Diseases / Q000276:immunology*; D009474:Neurons / Q000276:immunology*; D010257:Paraneoplastic Syndromes / Q000276:immunology*
chemical_list: D001323:Autoantibodies