[Acral ischemia as a rare paraneoplastic syndrome in the terminal phase of mouth floor carcinoma].

BACKGROUND

The term "paraneoplastic syndrome" describes a clinically apparent disease associated with a malignant neoplasm, which is not a direct consequence of invasive tumor growth. Acral ischemia and digital necrosis of multiple fingertips have been occasionally described as a paraneoplastic syndrome. However, the exact mechanisms of this phenomenon are still not adequately known.

CASE REPORT

This paper describes a 72-year-old male patient with severe acral ischemia and multiple necroses on several fingertips. Symptoms evolved under palliative chemotherapy with gemcitabine for inoperable metachronous squamous cell carcinoma of the tonsil following a history of two simultaneous carcinomas of the alveolar crest. Digital ischemia was combined with severe pain, similar to Raynaud's syndrome, which required therapeutic intervention. The treatment objective is to improve perfusion and simultaneously reduce pain. A combination of iloprost, an analog of prostacyclin (50 micrograms intravenous Ilomedin once daily), and a CT-guided thoracic sympathectomy achieved a continuous positive effect on the intensity of acral ischemia and alleviated the pain.