The Curious Case of Neuromyelitis Optica

LSU Health New Orleans Medical Student Places 1st in Poster Competition

January 27, 2022

Lauren Gawey, a third-year student at LSU Health New Orleans School of Medicine, won 1st Place in the Louisiana Chapter of the American College of Physicians’ 2022 Student Poster Competition. Her poster, The Curious Case of Neuromyelitis Optica, presented an unusual case of the demyelinating autoimmune disorder of the central nervous system that primarily affects the optic nerves and spinal cord.

Neuromyelitis optica (NMO) is most often caused by abnormal antibodies binding to proteins that transport water across cell membranes called aquaporin-4 (AQP4). The antibodies activate other parts of the immune system, causing inflammation. Damage to the optic nerve results in eye pain and vision loss.

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“Neuromyelitis optica is a disease that typically presents as its own entity,” notes Gawey. “However, our case was unique because the presentation of neuromyelitis optica was due to an underlying lung cancer.”

The case represented a relatively new demonstration of NMO triggered by an abnormal immune response to a cancerous tumor. Even within this rare group, the case stood out.

“Studies have shown that the presence of neuromyelitis optica due to underlying cancer is more likely to present in older adults, but our patient was 24 years old, which is much younger than the documented cases in the literature,” Gawey adds.

Gawey collaborated with Anh Nguyen, DO, PhD, an LSU Health New Orleans Hematology-Oncology Fellow.

“The presentation of this case has been very exciting to put together, and I couldn’t have done it without the help of Dr. Anh Nguyen,” Gawey says.

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