Complex neuromuscular disorder in a patient with chronic myeloid leukaemia

Abstract

We report a 44 year old man who developed external ophthalmoplegia and predominantly respiratory, truncal and bulbar weakness with brisk reflexes, histological evidence of an inflammatory myopathy and a high titre of acetylcholine receptor antibodies, one month after starting hydroxyurea and allopurinol for chronic myeloid leukaemia. The temporal relationship suggests a possible association between this patient's unusual neuromuscular disorder and either the chronic myeloid leukaemia or its treatment.