Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
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Query: UMLS:C0027627 (metastases)
 103,950 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Cancer-associated hypercalcemia is due to the: (a) elaboration of systemically-acting humoral factors by neoplasms which alter calcium metabolism in bone, kidney, and intestine; or (b) stimulation of bone resorption at sites of tumor metastasis to bone. It is likely that both mechanisms occur in the same patient with certain neoplasms. There are many humoral factors that can be produced by tumors, secreted into the circulation, and have distant effects which induce hypercalcemia. The stimulation of increased osteoclastic bone resorption is a principal feature of humoral hypercalcemia of malignancy, but the kidney also plays an important role. In addition, intestinal absorption of calcium may be a factor in the pathogenesis of hypercalcemia in certain neoplasms. Parathyroid hormone-related protein plays a dominant role in the pathogenesis of HHM. PTHrP alone is able to induce nearly all of the clinical signs of HHM in experimental animals, but other humoral factors, such as cytokines, can interact with PTHrP to contribute to the development of hypercalcemia. Neoplasms which metastasize widely to bone and induce local osteoclastic bone resorption, such as multiple myeloma, also are capable of inducing hypercalcemia. Based upon existing data it is not clear what percentage of neoplasms which metastasize to bone and stimulate local bone resorption also are capable of stimulating hypercalcemia by systemic factors. Future research is needed to delineate the systemic and local factors associated with CAH; to define interactions of humoral factors in the pathogenesis of hypercalcemia; and to investigate the regulation of transcription, translation, modification, and secretion of hypercalcemia-inducing factors in normal and neoplastic tissues.
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PMID:Mechanisms of cancer-induced hypercalcemia. 146 Aug 60

We report the case of a 34 year old male presenting with symptomatic hypercalcemia due to excessive PTHrP secretion from a pancreatic neuroendocrine carcinoma with extensive hypervascularization and without any evidence for metastatic disease. In the early phase of the disease conventional chemotherapy with streptozocin and doxorubicin was able to control functional activity as well as tumor growth. However, after 2 years tumor escape was indicated by severe therapy-resistant hypercalcemia. Therapeutic options were reduced due to the excessive tumor vascularization and the patient died from his disease after a short period of intensified therapy. The role of PTHrP in hypercalcemia of malignancy (HHM) and its association with neuroendocrine pancreatic tumors as well as possible therapeutic options are reviewed.
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PMID:Pancreatic neuroendocrine tumor with extensive vascularisation and parathyroid hormone-related protein (PTHrP)--associated hypercalcemia of malignancy. 1157 50

The most common cause of hypercalcemia in hospitalized patients is malignancy. Primary hyperparathyroidism most commonly causes hypercalcemia in the outpatient setting. These two account for over 90% of all cases of hypercalcemia. Hypercalcemia can be divided into PTH-mediated and PTH-independent variants. Primary hyperparathyroidism, familial hypocalciuric hypercalcemia, familial hyperparathyroidism, and secondary hyperparathyroidism are PTH mediated. The most common PTH-independent type of hypercalcemia is malignancy related. Several mechanisms lead to hypercalcemia in malignancy-direct osteolysis by metastatic disease or, more commonly, production of humoral factors by the primary tumor also known as humoral hypercalcemia of malignancy that accounts for about 80% of malignancy-related hypercalcemia. The majority of HHM is caused by tumor-produced parathyroid hormone-related protein and less frequently production of 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D or parathyroid hormone by the tumor. We report the rare case of a patient with hypercalcemia and diagnosed primary hyperparathyroidism. The patient had persistent hypercalcemia after surgical removal of parathyroid adenoma with recorded significant decrease in PTH level. After continued investigation it was found that the patient also had elevated 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D and further studies confirmed a large spleen mass that was later confirmed to be a lymphoma. This is a rare example of two concomitant causes of hypercalcemia requiring therapy.
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PMID:Multifactorial hypercalcemia and literature review on primary hyperparathyroidism associated with lymphoma. 2471 7