TAFRO Syndrome With Kidney Involvement: A Case Series of Patients With Kidney Biopsies

TAFRO (thrombocytopenia, anasarca, fever, reticulin myelofibrosis/renal insufficiency, and organomegaly) syndrome is a systemic inflammatory disease sharing some features with Castleman disease and POEMS (polyneuropathy, organomegaly, endocrinopathy, monoclonal protein, and skin changes) syndrome in relation to abnormal secretions of interleukin 6 and vascular endothelial growth factor. The kidney is a main target organ of TAFRO syndrome but the kidney histopathology associated with TAFRO syndrome is yet to be completely defined. We report 3 TAFRO syndrome cases with different clinical courses in which kidney biopsies were performed. In all 3 cases, kidney biopsies showed similar glomerular lesions of diffuse global swelling of the endothelium and expansion of subendothelial spaces, consistent with severe glomerular endothelial injury. Case 3 showed an additional finding of focal tubulointerstitial injury characterized by marked plasma cell infiltration, which was absent in the other 2 cases. Clinical symptoms in cases 1 and 2, which had lower disease severity scores of TAFRO syndrome, were effectively treated with the administration of corticosteroids or a combination of corticosteroids and cyclosporine A. Case 3, with a higher disease severity score, had an aggressive clinical course that was refractory to corticosteroids and tocilizumab; the patient ultimately died of multiple organ failure. In all 3 cases, kidney biopsy provided indications for the diagnosis process and clinical management of TAFRO syndrome.