Goodpasture syndrome

Goodpasture syndrome is a rare autoimmune disease in which antibodies attack the basement membrane in the lungs and kidneys, specifically targeting the alpha three subunit of type IV collagen, referred to as the Goodpasture antigen. This attack causes bleeding from the lungs and inflammation of the kidneys, known as glomerulonephritis, which can progress to kidney failure. The disease can quickly cause permanent lung and kidney damage and, without treatment, is usually fatal from either advanced kidney failure or lung hemorrhage, making early diagnosis critical. General symptoms include malaise, weight loss, fatigue and fever; kidney involvement causes blood and protein in the urine, facial swelling and high blood pressure, while lung symptoms, which usually appear first, include coughing up blood, chest pain in under half of cases, cough and shortness of breath. The disease was first described by American pathologist Ernest Goodpasture of Vanderbilt University in 1919 and was later named in his honor. Treatment involves plasmapheresis to remove the harmful antibodies, combined with immune suppressing medications such as corticosteroids and cyclophosphamide.