Bortezomib Treatment for Patients With Anti-N-Methyl-d-Aspartate Receptor Encephalitis

Bortezomib Treatment for Patients With Anti-N-Methyl-D-Aspartate Receptor Encephalitis Anti-N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor (anti-NMDAR) encephalitis, an autoimmune disease associated with ovarian teratoma, predominantly affects young females.1 Because antibodies against subunits of the NMDAR contribute to the pathogenesis, methods targeting humoral immunity are therapeutically efficacious.2 However, some patients have an unsatisfactory outcome after high-dose corticosteroids, apheresis therapies, or CD20-targeted B-cell depletion with rituximab.2 We describe 2 patients with severe anti-NMDAR encephalitis who received the proteasome inhibitor bortezomib (Velcade), which was well tolerated and followed by marked remission.