Anti-Tr/DNER Antibody-associated Paraneoplastic Neurological Syndrome Presenting Limbic Encephalitis with Anaplastic Large Cell Lymphoma: A Case Report

Intern Med. 2024 Dec 12. doi: 10.2169/internalmedicine.4530-24. Online ahead of print.

Abstract

An 82-year-old man presented with acute progressive disturbance of consciousness. We suspected autoimmune limbic encephalitis because of abnormal magnetic resonance imaging findings in the bilateral temporal lobes and cerebrospinal fluid pleocytosis. The patient tested positive for anti-Tr/Delta/Notch-like epidermal growth factor-related receptor (DNER) antibodies, and a tissue biopsy revealed complications of anaplastic large cell lymphoma. Typically, anti-Tr/DNER antibody-associated paraneoplastic neurological syndrome presents with cerebellar ataxia and is complicated by Hodgkin lymphoma (HL). However, there are rare cases that present only with LE and are complicated by tumors other than HL; therefore, aggressive antibody measurement and search for tumors are important.

Keywords: anaplastic large cell lymphoma; anti-Tr/DNER antibody; limbic encephalitis; paraneoplastic cerebellar degeneration; paraneoplastic neurologic syndrome.