Refractory Thrombocytopenia Responds to Octreotide Treatment in a Case of Evans Syndrome with Gastric Neuroendocrine Tumor

A 37-year-old woman with history of Evans Syndrome with poor response to high-dose corticoid treatment presented to the emergency department with gastrointestinal and vaginal bleeding. The patient was later diagnosed with severe thrombocytopenia and a stage G1, well-differentiated gastric neuroendoc...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Kocfa Chung-Delgado, Alejandro Revilla-Montag, Sonia Guillén-Bravo, Hugo Ríos-Díaz, José C. Alva-Muñoz
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Wiley 2013-01-01
Series:Case Reports in Hematology
Online Access:http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2013/391086
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:A 37-year-old woman with history of Evans Syndrome with poor response to high-dose corticoid treatment presented to the emergency department with gastrointestinal and vaginal bleeding. The patient was later diagnosed with severe thrombocytopenia and a stage G1, well-differentiated gastric neuroendocrine tumor, confirmed by a biopsy. A total gastrectomy was performed to eradicate the tumor. After being treated with a total splenectomy for her Evans Syndrome with no clinical or laboratory improvement, she began regular treatment with octreotide on the basis of a possible hepatic metastasis. Days after the initiation of the octreotide, an increase in the platelet count was evidenced by laboratory findings, from 2,000 platelets/mm3 to 109,000 platelets/mm3. Weeks later, the hepatic metastasis is discarded by a negative octreotide-body scan, and the octreotide treatment was interrupted. Immediately after the drug interruption, a progressive and evident descent in the platelet count was evidenced (4000 platelets/mm3). The present case report highlights the possible association between octreotide treatment and a severe thrombocytopenia resistant to conventional treatment.
ISSN:2090-6560
2090-6579