Ataxia-telangiectasia is a rare inherited disorder that affects the nervous system, immune system, and other body systems.  This disorder is characterized by progressive difficulty with coordinating movements (ataxia) beginning in early childhood, usually before age 5. Affected children typically develop difficulty walking, problems with balance and hand coordination, involuntary jerking movements (chorea), muscle twitches (myoclonus), and disturbances in nerve function (neuropathy).  The movement problems typically cause people to require wheelchair assistance by adolescence. People with this disorder also have slurred speech and trouble moving their eyes to look side-to-side (oculomotor apraxia). Small clusters of enlarged blood vessels called telangiectases, which occur in the eyes and on the surface of the skin, are also characteristic of this condition.

Affected individuals tend to have high amounts of a protein called alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) in their blood. The level of this protein is normally increased in the bloodstream of pregnant women, but it is unknown why individuals with ataxia-telangiectasia have elevated AFP or what effects it has in these individuals.

People with ataxia-telangiectasia often have a weakened immune system, and many develop chronic lung infections. They also have an increased risk of developing cancer, particularly cancer of blood-forming cells (leukemia) and cancer of immune system cells (lymphoma). Affected individuals are very sensitive to the effects of radiation exposure, including medical x-rays. 

Ataxia-telangiectasia has no cure, though treatments might improve some symptoms. These treatments include physical and speech therapy and improving deficits in the immune system and nutrition. The life expectancy of people with ataxia-telangiectasia varies greatly, but affected individuals typically live into early adulthood.

Ataxia-telangiectasia occurs in 1 in 40,000 to 100,000 people worldwide.

Variants (also called mutations) in the ATM gene cause ataxia-telangiectasia. The ATM gene provides instructions for making a protein that helps control cell division and is involved in DNA repair. This protein plays an important role in the normal development and activity of several body systems, including the nervous system and immune system. The ATM protein assists cells in recognizing damaged or broken DNA strands and coordinates DNA repair by activating enzymes that fix the broken strands. Efficient repair of damaged DNA strands helps maintain the stability of the cell's genetic information.

Variants in the ATM gene reduce or eliminate the function of the ATM protein. Without this protein, cells become unstable and die. Cells in the part of the brain involved in coordinating movements (the cerebellum) are particularly affected by loss of the ATM protein. The loss of these brain cells causes some of the movement problems characteristic of ataxia-telangiectasia. Variants in the ATM gene also prevent cells from responding correctly to DNA damage, which allows breaks in DNA strands to accumulate and can lead to the formation of cancerous tumors.

Genetic Testing Information

• Genetic Testing Registry: Ataxia-telangiectasia syndrome

Genetic and Rare Diseases Information Center

• Ataxia-telangiectasia

Patient Support and Advocacy Resources

• National Organization for Rare Disorders (NORD)

Clinical Trials

• ClinicalTrials.gov

Catalog of Genes and Diseases from OMIM

• ATAXIA-TELANGIECTASIA; AT

Scientific Articles on PubMed

• PubMed

• Demuth I, Dutrannoy V, Marques W Jr, Neitzel H, Schindler D, Dimova PS, Chrzanowska KH, Bojinova V, Gregorek H, Graul-Neumann LM, von Moers A, Schulze I, Nicke M, Bora E, Cankaya T, Olah E, Kiss C, Bessenyei B, Szakszon K, Gruber-Sedlmayr U, Kroisel PM, Sodia S, Goecke TO, Dork T, Digweed M, Sperling K, de Sa J, Lourenco CM, Varon R. New mutations in the ATM gene and clinical data of 25 AT patients. Neurogenetics. 2011 Nov;12(4):273-82. doi: 10.1007/s10048-011-0299-0. Epub 2011 Oct 2. Citation on PubMed
• Hall J. The Ataxia-telangiectasia mutated gene and breast cancer: gene expression profiles and sequence variants. Cancer Lett. 2005 Sep 28;227(2):105-14. doi: 10.1016/j.canlet.2004.12.001. Epub 2005 Jan 8. Citation on PubMed
• McGrath-Morrow SA, Rothblum-Oviatt CC, Wright J, Schlechter H, Lefton-Greif MA, Natale VA, Crawford TO, Lederman HM. Multidisciplinary Management of Ataxia Telangiectasia: Current Perspectives. J Multidiscip Healthc. 2021 Jun 28;14:1637-1644. doi: 10.2147/JMDH.S295486. eCollection 2021. Citation on PubMed
• McKinnon PJ. ATM and ataxia telangiectasia. EMBO Rep. 2004 Aug;5(8):772-6. doi: 10.1038/sj.embor.7400210. Citation on PubMed or Free article on PubMed Central
• Taylor AM, Byrd PJ. Molecular pathology of ataxia telangiectasia. J Clin Pathol. 2005 Oct;58(10):1009-15. doi: 10.1136/jcp.2005.026062. Citation on PubMed or Free article on PubMed Central
• Veenhuis S, van Os N, Weemaes C, Kamsteeg EJ, Willemsen M. Ataxia-Telangiectasia. 1999 Mar 19 [updated 2023 Oct 5]. In: Adam MP, Feldman J, Mirzaa GM, Pagon RA, Wallace SE, Amemiya A, editors. GeneReviews(R) [Internet]. Seattle (WA): University of Washington, Seattle; 1993-2025. Available from http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK26468/ Citation on PubMed
• Verhagen MM, Last JI, Hogervorst FB, Smeets DF, Roeleveld N, Verheijen F, Catsman-Berrevoets CE, Wulffraat NM, Cobben JM, Hiel J, Brunt ER, Peeters EA, Gomez Garcia EB, van der Knaap MS, Lincke CR, Laan LA, Tijssen MA, van Rijn MA, Majoor-Krakauer D, Visser M, van 't Veer LJ, Kleijer WJ, van de Warrenburg BP, Warris A, de Groot IJ, de Groot R, Broeks A, Preijers F, Kremer BH, Weemaes CM, Taylor MA, van Deuren M, Willemsen MA. Presence of ATM protein and residual kinase activity correlates with the phenotype in ataxia-telangiectasia: a genotype-phenotype study. Hum Mutat. 2012 Mar;33(3):561-71. doi: 10.1002/humu.22016. Epub 2012 Jan 25. Citation on PubMed