PMR and cancer | Arthritis Information

Hi, I've just been diagnosed with PMR. I'm taking 10mgs of prednisone. My Dr. is being conservative because I have diabetes and glaucoma. Eye pressures are up and blood glucose is up but I'm getting a handle on it. I've read that PMR can be the result of certain cancers. Does anyone know anything about this. ThanksThis is a P.S. to my post. I see there are mostly females on this forum, I am a 64 yr old male. I'm interested in seeing if there are many differences in symptoms or other aspects of the desease!Hi pcmaniac,

Welcome to a club none of wants to be part of! Yes - most of us are female as PMR is suffered by about 2 to 3 times as many women as men. However - Rick manages to put up with us and there are a few other gents who call in occasionally!

I don't know where you might have seen anything about PMR being caused by cancers - maybe it's a misunderstanding of the fact that a diagnosis of PMR is what is called a "diagnosis of exclusion" (just means they rule out anything else that looks like it and then say, must be PMR) and some of the things that are on the list are cancers which can cause similar muscle pains and symptoms such as the night sweats. In fact, if anyone is complaining of really severe night sweats one of the first things that should be thought of is certain cancers.

They don't know what causes PMR - it is thought to be autoimmune in origin, that means the body's immune system is attacking itself and causing trouble. Since there is evidence it can run in families there is probably a genetic aspect but then it is believed that there also needs to be a trigger to set it off. That could be environmental, an infection, an accident or just ordinary common-or-garden stress. Many people who develop it were very active - both exercise or as carers, for example, prior to developing it.

Men and women tend to experience both the disease process (the signs and symptoms and the degree to which it affects them) and the management with steroids very differently. Men often have less pain and stiffness and recover quite quickly, getting off steroids in shorter times than women - but that is a generalisation. We did actually have a discussion as to whether maybe that had more to do with the fact women have to carry on doing housework, looking after children and other activities where the stiffness and fatigue are a handicap at an age where they are harder work anyway, whilst many men are often at or close to retirement and so tend to be doing less than they used to. That's not to say we are dismissing your experience as being less than ours, just a reality! Some men seem to have been able to continue exercising after developing PMR - something that is a dream for many women with it! I can still do downhill skiing by building up gradually but walking is really uncomfortable and tiring - it all depends.

You may have seen the links on older posts to a couple of UK sites where you will find loads of info and other forums. I do recommend having a look at them sometime,

MrsE

Hi 'pcmaniac' (Richard),

Welcome to this not so exclusive club. Yes, I "manage to put up with all the ladies" on these forums like MrsE writes, ha ha RickF2011-04-19 08:35:30Thanks for all the help! I didn't know about PMR untill I was diagnosed.It took about a month and a half to find out what it was. The pain and fevers were excrutiating, and the Vicodin did not touch it. I lost 20lbs but now thanks to the prednisone I've gained half of that back! (Not good"Rarely, polymyalgia rheumatica is associated with a cancer. In this setting, the cancer may be initiating an inflammatory immune response to cause the polymyalgia rheumatica symptoms."

The website is: MedicineNet.com

I am a 77 year old woman and started with pmr in 2007. I was off prednisone for about 8 mos. and had a relapse. I have never had cancer until this year when a small area was discovered by a mammogram. I have recently had surgery. At present I am on 5 mg steroid and some aches but reasonably comfortable. It will be interesting to find out if this was the cause of the pmr inflammation.
"The cause of polymyalgia rheumatica is not known. Recent research has indicated that genetic (inherited) factors play a role in who becomes afflicted with the illness. Theories have included viral stimulation of the immune system in genetically susceptible individuals. Rarely, polymyalgia rheumatica is associated with a cancer. In this setting, the cancer may be initiating an inflammatory immune response to cause the polymyalgia rheumatica symptoms."

This says PMR is ASSOCIATED with cancer - that doesn't necessarily mean it is caused by cancer but that both are seen at the same time in very rare cases. There is no way of knowing if one caused the other - I saw a very telling comment in a medical commentary last week: "Correlation does not mean causation" (i.e. just because you see things together does not for one moment mean that one is the cause of the other). The much more common concept in diagnosis is that the symptoms of PMR may be caused by an underlying disease process and that must be ruled out first.

Heaven help most of us with PMR in that case as it is difficult to get a doctor to take PMR symptoms seriously without hoping that they might go looking for cancer as well!!! What IS very likely, however, is that untreated PMR can in the long term lead to a cancer, but this is because any chronic state of inflammation in the body, in particular one which leads to certain blood parameters being raised including CRP, is also associated with an increased risk of certain cancers (I discussed this at length with a top cancer research specialist in Europe). In your case then, Winnipeg, the converse could be the truth: the PMR led to the cancer rather than the other way round, with the cancer initiating the immune response. But it is unlikely that this chicken and egg situation will be elucidated any time soon!

In the meantime - may the PMR take a long walk and not return!!

Happy Easter or whatever holiday it is for you,

MrsE