Neurologic Complications in Patients With Cancer

Discordance Between Perceptions and Experience of Lumbar Puncture: A Prospective Study

Background and Objectives

Novel diagnostic techniques and neurologic biomarkers have greatly expanded clinical indications for CSF studies. CSF is most commonly obtained via lumbar puncture (LP). Although it is generally believed that LPs are well tolerated, there is a lack of supportive data for this claim, and patients anticipate LP to be painful. The objective of this study was to prospectively investigate discordance between patient perception and tolerability of LP.

Methods

Adult patients were surveyed before and after LP regarding their perceptions and experience of LP. Physician perceptions were gathered through a web-based survey. Relative risk and Spearman correlation were used to assess the relationship between responses. Paired binomial and paired ordinal responses were compared by McNemar and paired Wilcoxon rank-sum tests.

Results

A total of 178 patients completed the surveys. About half of the patients (58%) reported anxiety pre-LP, at median 3.0 of 10. Physicians overpredicted patients' pre-LP anxiety (median score 5.0, p < 0.001). Experienced pain was significantly less than predicted pain (median scores 0 and 3.0, respectively, p < 0.001). Patients who predicted pain were more likely to report pain from LP (relative risk [RR] 1.3). Predicting pain was also correlated with anxiety before LP (p < 0.001).

Discussion

LP was generally well tolerated. The majority of patients experienced minimal pain. Anticipation of pain was correlated with both feeling anxious and experiencing pain. The results of this study can be used to reassure patients and providers that LP is indeed not as painful as imagined, which may both reduce pre-LP anxiety and improve LP tolerability.

How to diagnose and manage neurological toxicities of immune checkpoint inhibitors: an update

As the use of cancer immunotherapy with immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) is expanding rapidly for the treatment of many tumor types, it is crucial that both neurologists and oncologists become familiar with the diagnosis and treatment of neurological immune-related adverse events (n-irAEs). These are rare complications, developing in their severe forms in only 1-3% of the patients, but are highly relevant due to their mortality and morbidity burden. The diagnosis of n-irAEs is-however-challenging, as many alternative diagnoses need to be considered in the complex scenario of a patient with advanced cancer developing neurological problems. A tailored diagnostic approach is advisable according to the presentation, clinical history, and known specificities of n-irAEs. Several patterns characterized by distinct clinical, immunological, and prognostic characteristics are beginning to emerge. For example, myasthenia gravis is more likely to develop after anti-programmed cell death protein 1 (PD-1) or anti-programmed cell death ligand 1 (PD-L1) treatment, while meningitis appears more frequently after anti-cytotoxic T lymphocyte antigen-4 (CTLA-4) therapy. Also, peripheral neuropathy and Guillain-Barré syndrome seem to be more common in patients with an underlying melanoma. Central nervous system disorders (CNS) are less frequent and are more often associated with lung cancer, and some of them (especially those with limbic encephalitis and positive onconeural antibodies) have a poor prognosis. Herein, we provide an update of the recent advances in the diagnosis and treatment of neurological toxicities related to ICI use, focusing on the exclusion of alternative diagnoses, diagnostic specificities, and treatment of n-irAEs.

When Should Neuroendovascular Care for Patients With Acute Stroke Be Palliative?

Noncurative surgeries intended to relieve suffering during serious illness or near end of life have been analyzed across palliative settings. Yet sparse guidance is available to inform clinical management decisions about whether, when, and which interventions should be offered when ischemic stroke and other neurological complications occur in patients whose survival is extended by other novel disease-modifying interventions. This case commentary examines key ethical and clinical considerations in palliative neuroendovascular care of patients with acute stroke.