A case report of neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorder induced by pembrolizumab treatment for lung adenocarcinoma: a clinical and immunohistochemical study

Background We report a case of neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorders (NMOSD), who developed after the pembrolizumab treatment, an immune checkpoint inhibitor, against lung adenocarcinoma. The present case is discussed with the lung adenocarcinoma specimen which was stained by aquaporin-4 (AQP4) and with literature review of NMOSD linked to immune checkpoint inhibitors. Case presentation A 62-year-old Japanese man presented with acute diencephalic syndrome, left optic neuritis, and myelitis 5 months after initiation of pembrolizumab treatment for lung adenocarcinoma. He was diagnosed with NMOSD based on serum anti-aquaporin-4 (AQP4) antibody positivity. Immunohistochemistry of lung biopsy samples showed AQP4 expression on CD68+ cells. This is the fifth reported case of AQP4+ NMOSD triggered by an immune checkpoint inhibitor and the first with a brain lesion. Four out of five NMOSD cases, including the present case and one case with lung metastasis, had lung cancer. Conclusions Immune checkpoint inhibitors may trigger AQP4+ NMOSD owing to their molecular similarity to AQP4 expressed in lung and glial tissues. Prompt brain/spinal cord imaging and anti-AQP4 antibody testing may facilitate early diagnosis of immune-mediated adverse event in central nervous system associated with immune checkpoint inhibitors.