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POEMS syndrome (polyneuropathy, organomegaly, endocrinopathy, monoclonal gammopathy, and skin lesions) is a rare but treatable paraneoplastic disorder of plasma cells associated with sensorimotor polyneuropathy, lambda gammopathy, and elevated cerebrospinal fluid protein and serum VEGF (vascular endothelial growth factor). Missed or delayed diagnosis is common. To investigate characteristics, outcomes, and risk factors, investigators retrospectively assessed data from 100 patients with POEMS syndrome at a U.K. institution who were followed for a median of 59 months.
Common features included hypogonadotrophic hypogonadism (72%), volume overload (70%), acrocyanosis (46%), lymphadenopathy (42%), weight loss, restrictive lung disease, and pulmon…