Acute kidney injury and long-term renal effects of alectinib in anaplastic lymphoma kinase-positive non-small cell lung carcinoma: a case report.

BACKGROUND: Targeted therapy with anaplastic lymphoma kinase inhibitor alectinib has become standard therapy for selected patients with non-small cell lung carcinoma. Few data are available on the renal effects of alectinib. We report on a case of acute kidney injury in a patient using alectinib for less than 2 weeks and on serum sodium and creatinine during long-term use of alectinib. CASE PRESENTATION: A 70-year-old Asian woman was diagnosed with metastasized non-small cell lung carcinoma (cT4N3M1c, stage IV) with echinoderm microtubule-associated protein-like 4 and anaplastic lymphoma kinase gene rearrangement and received alectinib, in two daily doses of 600 mg. Eleven days after the initiation of therapy, she was seen at the emergency department with acute kidney injury. Renal biopsy showed lesions in the proximal tubular epithelial cells. Nine days after alectinib cessation, renal function recovered quickly and reintroduction of alectinib in a reduced dose was tolerated, while withholding metformin, enalapril, and naproxen. In seven other patients, data on estimated glomerular filtration rate showed decreased kidney function at 3 months with stabilization at 6 months. Serum sodium at 3 months increased during alectinib treatment and increased further at 6 months. CONCLUSIONS: Our data suggest direct or indirect toxic (proximal) tubulopathy due to alectinib with a good prognosis after cessation. Adverse acute renal effects of alectinib may be prevented by avoiding other medication influencing renal hemodynamics, in particular nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs. Without these co-medications, alectinib could be reintroduced in our patient.

The effect of COVID-19 on transplant function and development of CLAD in lung transplant patients: A multicenter experience.

BACKGROUND: Concerns have been raised on the impact of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) on lung transplant (LTx) patients. The aim of this study was to evaluate the transplant function pre- and post-COVID-19 in LTx patients. METHODS: Data were retrospectively collected from LTx patients with confirmed COVID-19 from all 3 Dutch transplant centers, between February 2020 and September 2021. Spirometry results were collected pre-COVID-19, 3- and 6-months post infection. RESULTS: Seventy-four LTx patients were included. Forty-two (57%) patients were admitted, 19 (26%) to the intensive care unit (ICU). The in-hospital mortality was 20%. Twelve out of 19 ICU patients died (63%), a further 3 died on general wards. Patients with available spirometry (78% at 3 months, 65% at 6 months) showed a significant decline in mean forced expiratory volume in 1 second (FEV1) (ΔFEV1 138 ± 39 ml, p = 0.001), and forced vital capacity (FVC) (ΔFVC 233 ±74 ml, p = 0.000) 3 months post infection. Lung function improved slightly from 3 to 6 months after COVID-19 (ΔFEV1 24 ± 38 ml; ΔFVC 100 ± 46 ml), but remained significantly lower than pre-COVID-19 values (ΔFEV1 86 ml ± 36 ml, p = 0.021; ΔFVC 117 ± 35 ml, p = 0.012). FEV1/FVC was > 0.70. CONCLUSIONS: In LTx patients COVID-19 results in high mortality in hospitalized patients. Lung function declined 3 months after infection and gradually improved at 6 months, but remained significantly lower compared to pre-COVID-19 values. The more significant decline in FVC than in FEV1 and FEV1/FVC > 70%, suggested a more restrictive pattern.

The Effect of Visual Feedback on Writing Size in Parkinson's Disease.

Parkinson's disease (PD) leads to impairment in multiple cognitive domains. Micrographia is a relatively early PD sign of visuomotor dysfunction, characterized by a global reduction in writing size and a decrement in size during writing. Here we aimed to investigate the effect of withdrawal of visual feedback on writing size in patients with PD. Twenty-five patients with non-tremor-dominant PD without cognitive dysfunction and twenty-five age-matched controls had to write a standard sentence with and without visual feedback. We assessed the effect of withdrawal of visual feedback by measuring vertical word size (i), horizontal length of the sentence (ii), and the summed horizontal word length without interspacing (iii), comparing patients with controls. In both patients and controls, writing was significantly larger without visual feedback. This enlargement did not significantly differ between the groups. Smaller handwriting significantly correlated with increased disease severity. Contrary to previous observations that withdrawal of visual feedback caused increased writing size in specifically PD, we did not find differences between patients and controls. Both groups wrote larger without visual feedback, which adds insight in general neuronal mechanisms underlying the balance between feed-forward and feedback in visuomotor control, mechanisms that also hold for grasping movements.