A 72-Year-Old Man Comes to the Office Due to Progressive

A 72-year-old man comes to the office due to progressive weakness, fatigue, anorexia, and a 10-kg (22-lb) weight loss over the past 4 months.  He says that food doesn't taste as good as it once did, and he feels full after eating only a small amount.  The patient has had a morning cough for the past several years and had streaks of blood in his sputum 2 weeks ago.  He has a 50-pack-year smoking history.  On examination, the patient appears frail with a sunken face and bitemporal wasting.  His arms are thin with notable muscle wasting.  Lung examination reveals wheezing on the right side.  Chest x-ray reveals an irregular right perihilar mass.  Which of the following is most likely contributing to this patient's muscle wasting?

A) Calcium channel autoantibody
B) Interferon-α
C) Interleukin-3
D) Transforming growth factor-β
E) Tumor necrosis factor-α
F) Vasopressin

Correct Answer:

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