Meanings
- uncountableA rare medical syndrome, the combination of a plasma-cell proliferative disorder (typically myeloma), polyneuropathy, and effects on many other organ systems.
Synonyms: Crow-Fukase syndrome, PEP syndrome, Takatsuki disease
Synonyms & antonyms
nounA rare medical syndrome, the combination of a plasma-cell proliferative disorder (typically myeloma), polyneuropathy, and effects on many other organ systems.
Origin
Coined by Bardwick et al in 1980 as an acronym of some of the main features (though this list is neither exhaustive nor always accurate): polyneuropathy, organomegaly, endocrinopathy or edema, M-protein (an abnormal immunoglobulin), and skin abnormalities.
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
POEMS syndrome. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/POEMS%20syndrome
“POEMS syndrome.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/POEMS%20syndrome. Accessed November 5, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “POEMS syndrome,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/POEMS%20syndrome.
Source: POEMS syndrome on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.