Response of the Central Nervous System to Cancer: General Features and Cancer-Related Dementias

Abstract

One important group of complications of cancer involves the nervous system. In broad terms any discussion of these effects should consider both the direct effects of locally growing tumors and the effects of tumors at sites remote from the nervous system. The latter include a group of still poorly understood entities, the paraneoplastic syndromes. In reviewing the titled subject we will be somewhat selective since there is already a considerable literature including a number of excellent reviews (e.g, (14)). It will be of value at the outset to overview the basic types of responses and to discuss a number of pathogenetic mechanisms. In this regard, we have taken the liberty of utilizing recent experimental work in other areas, and to speculate on pathogenetic mechanisms when such information is not available from other sources. Also, we will consider the biological behavior as it pertains to the CNS as a function of the cell type of origin of the tumor or neoplastic process. The latter approach should aid in appreciating the basis of many instances of functional impairment of the nervous system secondary to cancer.