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Research - We are Hope > Meet Our Expert: Josep Dalmau, MD, PhD Meet Our Expert: Josep Dalmau, MD, PhD
Faculty Title Administrative Title Department Research Expertise Paraneoplastic
neurologic disorders are caused by cancer-induced immunologic
mechanisms. These disorders can affect any part of the central and
peripheral nervous system. As a result of these immune responses,
patients develop severe neurologic symptoms, including seizures, memory
problems, hypothalamic dysfunction, and paralysis or sensory deficits
that usually precede the diagnosis of the cancer. The current concept
is that the expression of neuronal proteins by the cancer triggers an
immune response against the tumor that is misdirected against the
nervous system, resulting in the paraneoplastic disorder. This immune
response is characterized by high titer of serum antibodies (often
accompanied by cytotoxic T-cell responses) that specifically react with
proteins exclusively expressed by neurons and the cancer cells
(onconeuronal antigens). Detection of these serum antibodies allows the
diagnosis of the neurologic disorder as paraneoplastic, saving the
patient from extensive and sometimes invasive tests, and directs the
search of the tumor to a few organs, depending of the type of antibody.
Studies have resulted in the clinical characterization of several
paraneoplastic disorders, and in discovery of a number of antibodies
and target antigens, which are currently used as diagnostic tests for
these syndromes. Paraneoplastic neurologic disorders are also important
because they are natural models of effective anti-tumor immunity. The
cancers of patients with some paraneoplastic neurologic syndromes are
usually small and often escape detection by standard tests. We have
demonstrated that the paraneoplastic immune response contributes to the
less aggressive behavior of cancers associated to paraneoplastic
syndromes. Current projects are directed to model the anti-tumor immune
response in animals in order to develop novel strategies for cancer
therapy.
Cancer Program
Other Affiliations Residency Fellowship Board Certifications Honors and Awards Residents' Award for Excellence in Teaching, Department of Neurology, University of Pennsylvania, 2005
European Neurological Society Award, 1998 Publications Researcher/Clinician: Sophia Pappas Office Phone: 215-746-4707 Appointment Phone: 215-746-4707 Fax: 215-746-4717 sophia.pappas@uphs.upenn.edu |
