Abstract
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis is a fatal neurodegenerative disorder with progressive deterioration of both upper and lower motor neuron functions. It is a rare disease with one study demonstrating a prevalence of 3.9 cases per 100,000 in the USA in the year 2010–2011. It is a fatal disease with most of the deaths resulting from respiratory failure. There is no cure of this illness with some evidence supporting an improved median survival by two to three months with Riluzole (one of the agents used for treatment). Not much is known about the possible etiologies of ALS, a few studies have shown a possible likely association of ALS with various malignancies. Here we present an interesting case of a 35-year-old female with a diagnosis of chronic myeloid leukemia for seven years presented with a sub-acute decline in her motor function.
Highlights
It is noteworthy that these studies, on one hand, highlighted the fact that while some cancers are associated with increased ALS cancer death risk like melanoma there are some other cancers like prostate cancer which may be related to reduced risks of ALS death [7]
ALS is a debilitating and progressive neurodegenerative disorder with the involvement of both upper and lower motor neurons leading to muscle weakness, functional deterioration, and death
A total of 1216 ALS deaths were reported among 1-year survivors of cancer over 16.6 million person-years of follow-up [7]
Summary
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis is a fatal neurodegenerative disorder with progressive deterioration of both upper and lower motor neuron functions It is a rare disease with one study demonstrating a prevalence of 3.9 cases per 100,000 in the USA in the year 2010-2011 with most of the deaths resulting from respiratory failure [1,2]. The weakness involved her bilateral lower extremities and left upper extremity with loss of hand grip No data supports such presentation of motor neuron weakness secondary to tyrosine kinase inhibitors which have a reported side effect of peripheral neuropathy. An extensive workup was done as her presentation warranted a broad differential Her complete blood count and comprehensive metabolic panel showed no abnormalities. Patient’s overall functional status deteriorated over the course of the few months with worsening respiratory status with eventual tracheostomy and discharge to a skilled nursing facility
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