A Successfully Treated Case of Intrahepatic Cholangiocarcinoma with Exacerbation of Dermatomyositis

Dermatomyositis with intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma: a case report and data mining based on machine learning

Cancer secondary to dermatomyositis (DM) is defined as paraneoplastic dermatomyositis, which is one of the major subtypes of DM. However, cases of DM with intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma (ICC) are rarely reported. In the course of our clinical work, we encountered a case of a middle-aged female patient who was diagnosed with DM for 7 years and then diagnosed with ICC, and we would like to share this case. In addition, in order to further investigate the deeper mechanism of ICC associated with DM, we also analyzed the dataset related to DM and ICC in the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database based on the machine learning methods and found that poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase family member 12 (PARP12) and metallothionein 1M (MT1M) were closely associated with ICC secondary to DM. They are potentially important biomarkers for predicting the occurrence of ICC in patients with DM.

Paraneoplastic syndromes in cholangiocarcinoma

Paraneoplastic syndromes are the symptoms or signs which result from damage to tissues that are distant from the site of malignancy, due to complex interactions between the body’s immune system and malignant neoplasm. Cholangiocarcinoma (CCA) is an aggressive epithelial malignancy of hepatobiliary tree and it is found to be associated with various paraneoplastic syndromes. These syndromes can present as dermatological, neurological, renal, hematological, or multi-systemic manifestations. Clinical suspicion and timely recognition of these syndromes can lead to early diagnosis of covert malignancies like CCA. The management plan remains the removal of the underlying cause which in this case is CCA.