Thalidomide is used for the management of several diseases, including the treatment
of patients with multiple myeloma who have relapsed(
1
,
2
,
3
). As the number of patients receiving thalidomide for longer periods of time increases,
several previously unrecognized adverse events have been observed (
4
,
5
,
6
). We observed symptomatic hypothyroidism, characterized by a high serum thyroid-stimulating
hormone (TSH) level and low thyroxine level, in a patient with multiple myeloma during
therapy with thalidomide. Indeed, known adverse effects of thalidomide, such as bradycardia,
lethargy, and constipation, are potential manifestation of hypothyroidism. This led
us to evaluate thyroid function tests, when available, in multiple myeloma patients
who had received thalidomide in our clinical trials.Keywords
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References
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Article Info
Publication History
Accepted:
December 13,
2001
Received in revised form:
September 25,
2001
Received:
May 25,
2001
Identification
Copyright
© 2002 Excerpta Medica Inc. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
