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Subclinical thiamine deficiency in patients with abdominal cancer

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  26 December 2017

Hideki Onishi ,
Mayumi Ishida ,
Iori Tanahashi ,
Takao Takahashi ,
Yoshitada Taji ,
Kenji Ikebuchi ,
Daisuke Furuya  and
Tatsuo Akechi
Hideki Onishi*
Affiliation:
Department of Psycho-oncology, Saitama Medical University International Medical Center, Saitama, Japan
Mayumi Ishida
Affiliation:
Department of Psycho-oncology, Saitama Medical University International Medical Center, Saitama, Japan
Iori Tanahashi
Affiliation:
Department of Psycho-oncology, Saitama Medical University International Medical Center, Saitama, Japan
Takao Takahashi
Affiliation:
Palliative Medicine, Saitama Medical University International Medical Center, Saitama, Japan
Yoshitada Taji
Affiliation:
Laboratory Medicine, Saitama Medical University International Medical Center, Saitama, Japan
Kenji Ikebuchi
Affiliation:
Laboratory Medicine, Saitama Medical University International Medical Center, Saitama, Japan
Daisuke Furuya
Affiliation:
General Medicine, Saitama Medical University International Medical Center, Saitama, Japan
Tatsuo Akechi
Affiliation:
Department of Psychiatry and Cognitive-Behavioral Medicine, Nagoya City University Graduate School of Medical Sciences, Nagoya, Japan
*
Author for Correspondence: Hideki Onishi, Department of Psycho-oncology, Saitama Medical University International Medical Center, 1397-1 Yamane, Hidaka City, Saitama 350-1298, Japan. E-mail: honishi@saitama-med.ac.jp
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Abstract

Objective

Thiamine is an essential coenzyme for oxidative metabolisms; however, it is not synthesized in the human body, and the average thiamine storage capacity is approximately 18 days. Therefore, thiamine deficiency (TD) can occur in any condition of unbalanced nutrition. If TD is left untreated, it causes the neuropsychiatric disorder Wernicke encephalopathy (WE). Although WE is a medical emergency, it is sometimes overlooked because most patients with WE do not exhibit all of the typical symptoms, including delirium, ataxia, and ophthalmoplegia. If all of the typical clinical symptoms of WE are absent, diagnosis of TD or WE becomes more difficult.

Method

From a series of cancer patients, we reported three patients who developed TD without the typical clinical symptoms of WE.

Result

A 69-year-old woman with pancreatic body cancer receiving chemotherapy with paclitaxel and gemcitabine for six months. Her performance status (PS) was 1. A detailed interview revealed that she had appetite loss for six months. Another 69-year-old woman with ovarian cancer received nedaplatin; her PS was 0. A detailed interview revealed that she had appetite loss for three months. A 67-year-old woman with colon cancer receiving ramucirumab in combination with second-line fluorouracil with folinic acid and irinotecan. Her PS was 1. A detailed interview revealed that she had appetite loss for three weeks. None exhibited typical clinical signs of WE, but they developed appetite loss for six months, three months, and three weeks, respectively. The diagnosis of TD was supported by abnormally low serum thiamine levels.

Significance of the results

This report emphasizes the possibility of TD in cancer patients even when patients do not develop typical clinical signs of WE. The presence of appetite loss for more than two weeks may aid in diagnosing TD. Patients receiving chemotherapy may be at greater risk for developing TD.

Keywords

Cancerthiamine deficiencyWernicke's encephalopathydelirium
Type
Case Report
Information
Palliative & Supportive Care , Volume 16 , Special Issue 4: Topics in Bereavement , August 2018 , pp. 497 - 499
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2017 

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