Immune Checkpoint Inhibitor-Induced Myositis/Myasthenia Gravis Overlap. 2023

Caroline Gosser, and Anas Al Bawaliz, and Waled Bahaj, and Jason Chesney, and Smita Ranjan
Internal Medicine, University of Louisville School of Medicine, Louisville, USA.

Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) have considerably changed the management of several malignancies. Although these agents transformed the scope of management in oncology and proved long-term efficacy, they have been associated with numerous autoimmune-related adverse events. We presented a case of a 61-year-old male with a history of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) who presented with respiratory failure requiring mechanical ventilation. He was discharged with a working diagnosis of myasthenia gravis crisis secondary to the use of pembrolizumab. On further evaluation, he was found to possibly have pembrolizumab-induced myositis. He was treated with plasmapheresis, methylprednisolone, and rituximab and achieved significant improvement. Pembrolizumab, a monoclonal antibody, is an ICI that targets programmed death protein 1 (PD-1), thereby blocking the interaction between PD-1 and PDL-1, leading to an enhancement of T-cell mediated immune response against tumor cells. Pembrolizumab has been used to treat a variety of malignancies including melanoma, NSCLC, and other solid tumors. Though ICIs have revolutionized the field of oncology, they should be used with caution. ICIs can cause immune-related adverse events (irAEs), including myasthenia gravis and myositis. Diagnosing irAEs is challenging due to their nonspecific presentations and lack of antibody markers. Therefore, patients and clinicians should be aware of irAEs in order to initiate timely intervention.

UI MeSH Term Description Entries

Related Publications

Caroline Gosser, and Anas Al Bawaliz, and Waled Bahaj, and Jason Chesney, and Smita Ranjan
January 2023, Journal of neurosciences in rural practice,
Caroline Gosser, and Anas Al Bawaliz, and Waled Bahaj, and Jason Chesney, and Smita Ranjan
August 2021, The American journal of emergency medicine,
Caroline Gosser, and Anas Al Bawaliz, and Waled Bahaj, and Jason Chesney, and Smita Ranjan
December 2021, The oncologist,
Caroline Gosser, and Anas Al Bawaliz, and Waled Bahaj, and Jason Chesney, and Smita Ranjan
January 2020, Frontiers in neurology,
Caroline Gosser, and Anas Al Bawaliz, and Waled Bahaj, and Jason Chesney, and Smita Ranjan
October 2021, Asia-Pacific journal of clinical oncology,
Caroline Gosser, and Anas Al Bawaliz, and Waled Bahaj, and Jason Chesney, and Smita Ranjan
February 2023, Cancer medicine,
Caroline Gosser, and Anas Al Bawaliz, and Waled Bahaj, and Jason Chesney, and Smita Ranjan
April 2024, Cureus,
Caroline Gosser, and Anas Al Bawaliz, and Waled Bahaj, and Jason Chesney, and Smita Ranjan
October 2020, The Journal of emergency medicine,
Caroline Gosser, and Anas Al Bawaliz, and Waled Bahaj, and Jason Chesney, and Smita Ranjan
September 2021, Rinsho shinkeigaku = Clinical neurology,
Caroline Gosser, and Anas Al Bawaliz, and Waled Bahaj, and Jason Chesney, and Smita Ranjan
May 2022, Immunotherapy,
Copied contents to your clipboard!