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Everything about Cachexia

Syndrome causing muscle loss

Cachexia is a syndrome that occurs in people with certain illnesses, causing muscle loss that cannot be fully reversed with improved nutrition. It most commonly occurs in cases of cancer, congestive heart failure, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, chronic kidney disease, and AIDS. These conditions change how the body handles inflammation, metabolism, and brain signaling. This can lead to muscle loss and other harmful changes to body composition over time. Unlike weight loss from inadequate caloric intake, cachexia mainly causes muscle loss and can happen with or without fat loss. Diagnosis of cachexia is difficult because there are no clear guidelines, and its occurrence varies from one affected person to the next. Wikipedia →

🧭 Start here: a 6-step reading path

  1. Read the overview: CachexiaA 5-minute orientation
  2. Skim a recent paper: Ponsegromab for the Treatment of Cancer CachexiaInfluential work since 2022
  3. Pick up a classic book: Pharmacotherapy of cachexiaThe most-reprinted book on the subject
  4. Read the landmark paper: Definition and classification of cancer cachexia: an international consensusCited 5,271 times
  5. Go sideways: Muscle atrophyA closely related topic
  6. Go sideways: SarcopeniaA closely related topic

đź“– Definitions

Noun A systemic wasting of muscle tissue, with or without loss of fat mass, that accompanies a chronic disease.

🗂️ The subject at a glance

  1. Definition
  2. Causes
  3. Mechanism
  4. Diagnosis
  5. Treatment
  6. Epidemiology
  7. History
  8. Research

🏆 Landmark papers (most cited)

🆕 Influential since 2022

đź“š Books worth reading

Ranked by number of editions on Open Library, a rough measure of how lasting a book is.

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