Shahar Shelly, MD Senior Physician

Dr. Shahar Shelly is the Chair of the department of Neurology at Rambam Health Care Campus.

My journey into the intersection of neuroimmunology and oncology was shaped by unexpected discoveries. Initially, my focus was on leveraging big data to uncover molecular insights into neurological diseases, but during my residency, I led a multicenter study on titanium nanoparticles and their impact on the blood-brain barrier, highlighting how external factors could influence neuroinflammation.

My research fellowship at the Mayo Clinic further deepened my understanding of immune-mediated neurology, as I identified Neurochondrin, a patentable antigen now tested in clinical practice, and conducted electrophysiological studies on Lambert-Eaton myasthenic syndrome, a disorder often linked to small cell lung cancer.

These early findings laid the foundation for my growing interest in the oncological aspects of neuroimmunology. Later, while studying myasthenia gravis (MG), I led a big data analysis of over 40,000 patients, uncovering a striking association between MG and malignancies (PMID: 37652699).

This finding compelled me to investigate the broader links between cancer and autoimmune neuromuscular disorders, culminating in my most recent work on necrotizing autoimmune myopathy (PMID: 39829143).

Through these studies, I have come to see cancer not as an isolated pathology but as a key player in the immune landscape of neurological disease. By refining diagnostic strategies and identifying biomarkers, I aim to bridge the gap between neurology and oncology, advancing precision medicine for patients with cancer-associated autoimmune disorders.