Paraneoplastic syndromes.

The neuromuscular complications of systemic cancer include direct effects (compression or infiltration of peripheral nerve tissues by tumor cells), effects of radiation and chemotherapy, and remote effects. Remote effects constitute the paraneoplastic syndromes--a heterogeneous group of disorders that include motor neuron disease, axon-loss and demyelinating polyneuropathies, Lambert-Eaton myasthenic syndrome, and inflammatory myopathies.