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Cancer Cachexia pp 7–23Cite as

Pathophysiology

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Abstract

About half of all cancer patients show a cachexia syndrome, characterized by anorexia and loss of adipose tissue and skeletal muscle mass. Numerous cytokines have been postulated to play a role in the etiology of cancer cachexia. Cytokines can elicit effects that mimic leptin signaling and suppress orexigenic ghrelin and neuropeptide Y (NPY) signaling, inducing sustained anorexia and cachexia not accompanied by the usual compensatory response. Furthermore, cytokines have been implicated in the induction of cancer-related muscle wasting.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Massey Cancer Center, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA, USA

    Egidio Del Fabbro

  2. Psychosomatic Internal Medicine, Kagoshima University Graduate School of Medical and Dental Sciences, Kagoshima, Kagoshima, Japan

    Akio Inui

  3. Department of Internal Medicine, Cantonal Hospital, St Gallen, St. Gallen, Switzerland

    Florian Strasser

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  1. Egidio Del Fabbro
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  2. Akio Inui
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  3. Florian Strasser
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Correspondence to Egidio Del Fabbro .

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Del Fabbro, E., Inui, A., Strasser, F. (2012). Pathophysiology. In: Cancer Cachexia. Springer Healthcare, Tarporley. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-910315-07-1_2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-910315-07-1_2

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