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Case Report
Incapacitating migratory polyarthritis and renal tumor in a young patient
1 Department of Urology, Hospital de Clínicas “Dr. Manuel Quintela”, Montevideo, Uruguay
Address correspondence to:
Federico Suaya
Department of Urology, Hospital de Clínicas “Dr. Manuel Quintela”, Montevideo,
Uruguay
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Article ID: 100065Z15FS2026
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Suaya F, Gianelli M, Martinez L. Incapacitating migratory polyarthritis and renal tumor in a young patient. J Case Rep Images Urol 2026;11(1):30–32.ABSTRACT
Introduction: Paraneoplastic syndromes (PNS) are clinical manifestations caused by systemic effects of malignancy rather than direct tumor invasion or metastasis. Renal cell carcinoma (RCC) is frequently associated with PNS, which may precede tumor diagnosis and represent an important diagnostic clue. Rheumatologic manifestations such as migratory polyarthritis are uncommon but well-described paraneoplastic phenomena.
Case Report: We report the case of a 43-year-old previously healthy male who presented with a one-month history of rapidly progressive, incapacitating migratory polyarthritis predominantly involving the lower-limb large joints, accompanied by intermittent febrile episodes. Extensive infectious, autoimmune, and rheumatologic evaluations were negative, including antinuclear antibodies, rheumatoid factor, antiphospholipid antibodies, and blood and urine cultures. During the etiological work-up, contrast-enhanced abdominal computed tomography revealed a solid heterogeneous mass measuring approximately 4.7 cm in the upper and middle pole of the right kidney. The patient underwent laparoscopic transperitoneal partial nephrectomy with selective arterial clamping. Pathological examination demonstrated clear cell renal cell carcinoma, eosinophilic variant, ISUP grade 2, staged as pT1b, with negative surgical margins.
Conclusion: This case highlights migratory polyarthritis as a rare but significant paraneoplastic manifestation of RCC and underscores the importance of considering occult malignancy in patients with atypical, severe inflammatory arthritis of unclear etiology.
Keywords: Inflammatory arthritis, Migratory polyarthritis, Paraneoplastic syndrome, Partial nephrectomy, Renal cell carcinoma
SUPPORTING INFORMATION
Acknowledgments
The authors would like to thank the Department of Radiology and the Department of Pathology of Hospital de Clínicas “Dr. Manuel Quintela” for their support in diagnostic imaging and histopathological evaluation.
Author ContributionsFederico Suaya - Conception of the work, Design of the work, Acquisition of data, Analysis of data, Drafting the work, Final approval of the version to be published, Agree to be accountable for all aspects of the work in ensuring that questions related to the accuracy or integrity of any part of the work are appropriately investigated and resolved.
Matias Gianelli - Conception of the work, Design of the work, Drafting the work, Revising the work critically for important intellectual content, Final approval of the version to be published, Agree to be accountable for all aspects of the work in ensuring that questions related to the accuracy or integrity of any part of the work are appropriately investigated and resolved.
Levin Martinez - Drafting the work, Revising the work critically for important intellectual content, Final approval of the version to be published, Agree to be accountable for all aspects of the work in ensuring that questions related to the accuracy or integrity of any part of the work are appropriately investigated and resolved.
Guaranter of SubmissionThe corresponding author is the guarantor of submission.
Source of SupportNone
Consent StatementWritten informed consent was obtained from the patient for publication of this article.
Data AvailabilityAll relevant data are within the paper and its Supporting Information files.
Conflict of InterestAuthors declare no conflict of interest.
Copyright© 2026 Federico Suaya et al. This article is distributed under the terms of Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium provided the original author(s) and original publisher are properly credited. Please see the copyright policy on the journal website for more information.
