Publications by authors named "C Birzu"
Paraneoplastic Neurologic Syndromes Associated With Merkel Cell Carcinoma.
Neurol Neuroimmunol Neuroinflamm
November 2024
Article Synopsis
- The study focuses on understanding the clinical and immunologic characteristics of patients with paraneoplastic neurologic syndromes (PNSs) linked to Merkel cell carcinoma (MCC).
- A total of 47 patients were analyzed, revealing common neurological disorders such as Lambert-Eaton myasthenic syndrome (LEMS) and encephalomyelitis, along with significant associations with specific neural antibodies.
- The findings indicate that many patients initially presented without identifiable skin tumors but had lymph node metastases, and those without a primary tumor had a lower mortality rate compared to those with identified tumors.
Article Synopsis
- The study investigated immune checkpoint inhibitor-related encephalitis (ICI-encephalitis) to better understand its characteristics, identify diagnostic biomarkers, and explore factors predicting patient outcomes.* -
- It analyzed data from 67 patients (median age 69 years) diagnosed between 2015-2023, finding that 64% had focal syndromes (like limbic encephalitis) while 36% had meningoencephalitis, with the former showing worse treatment responses and higher mortality rates.* -
- The presence of PNS-related antibodies and abnormal MRI findings were more common in focal encephalitis cases, highlighting important distinctions that could guide future diagnostics and therapeutic strategies.*
Background: Glioblastoma (GBM) is the most common devastating primary brain cancer in adults. In our clinical practice, median overall survival (mOS) of GBM patients seems increasing over time.
Methods: To address this observation, we have retrospectively analyzed the prognosis of 722 newly diagnosed GBM patients, aged below 70, in good clinical conditions (i.
Background: The clinical spectrum of melanoma-associated neurological autoimmunity, whether melanoma-associated paraneoplastic neurological syndromes (PNS) or induced by immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICI), is not well characterized. We aim to describe the clinical spectrum of melanoma-associated neurological autoimmunity.
Methods: A systematic review of the literature combined with patients from French databases of paraneoplastic neurological syndromes was conducted.
Impact of Immune Checkpoint Inhibitors on the Course of Multiple Sclerosis.
Neurol Neuroimmunol Neuroinflamm
March 2024
Objectives: Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) are increasingly used in cancer treatment. Their mechanism of action raises the question of possible exacerbation of preexisting multiple sclerosis (MS). The aim of our study was to assess the risk of increased MS activity, defined by the occurrence of a relapse and/or a new MRI lesion, after ICI initiation.
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