Endocrine Abstracts

To date, magnetic resonance tomography is generally considered the imaging method of choice for its premium resolution of lesions and surrounding anatomic structures. This is mainly due to the improved soft tissue contrast this method offers. Other advantages are the possibility of direct multiplanar imaging in sagittal, coronal, and axial orientations and the avoidance of ionizing radiation. The goal of all imaging studies in this region is to indicate precisely the location,...

Most pituitary operations for Cushings’s disease are technically difficult procedures. Since the souce of excessive ACTH-secretion in Cushing’s disesase is almost invariably a pituitary microadenoma, selective resection of this minute tumor is considered the primary standard therapy. However, almost half of the tumors escape direct preoperative detection even by sophisticated magnetic resonance imaging. Thus, in these the indication for surgery is based on laboratory...

A 22-year-old woman presented with weight gain (class I obesity), oligomenorrhea, impaired vision, and altered concentration. With suspected craniopharyngeoma she was treated with transcranial surgery; in fact for a suprasellar haemangioma. Post-operatively, she still presented an alteration in appetite with hyperphagia and excessive weight gain up to class III obesity. This syndrome is described as ‘hypothalamic obesity’ and results from any damage to the ventromedi...

Introduction: The involvement of the Wnt/ß-catenin pathway is apparent different epithelial human cancers. Wnt stabilizes ß-catenin (free ß-catenin) by preventing its phosphorylation which targets ß-catenin for degradation. Free ß-catenin is translocated to the nucleus where it stimulates a number of genes that modulate proliferation and differentiation upon binding to TCF/LEF-1. We have previously shown that Wnt/ß-catenin pathway is dysregulated ...

Purpose: Neuroendocrine dysfunction represents a frequent consequence of traumatic brain injury (TBI) but has not been studied longitudinally as yet. Here we attempt to identify predictors of late endocrine insufficiency following TBI.Methods: 71 consecutive patients (age 18 – 87 yrs) with TBI assessed by an intial CT and the Glasgow Coma Score (GCS) were prospectively studied as to their pituitary function on day 0, 3 and 7 and dynamically 24–...

Background: Metastases to the sellar region are extremely rare tumours in surgical series. The reported incidence has recently increased with advances in neuroimaging. Survival of patients with metastatic cancer has improved due to progress in oncologic therapies and diagnostics. Patients with sellar metastases (SM) follow a variable disease course that is not well defined.Objective: The objective was to evaluate the clinical characteristics, surgical ap...

Background: Posterior pituitary tumors (PPTs) present as clinically nonfunctioning space-occupying lesions of the sellar region. The diagnosis of PPTs is not possible on the basis of their clinical, radiological and biochemical features. Immunohistochemistry identifies them for their expression of TTF. They are virtually always mistakenly defined as one of the more common pituitary tumours. Due to their rarity, the long-term endocrine aspects and outcomes of PPTs are not well ...

Introduction: Pituicytoma is a rare neoplasm of the sellar region, believed to originate from neurohypophyseal cells. Tumor resection is the primary treatment option, but may remain incomplete due to excessive bleeding of the well vascluarized tumor stroma. Therefore the search for alternative or additional treatment regimens is necessary. In a previous publication in 2012 the presence of VEGF-R was shown in one tumor sample, potentially opening the door for modern treatment o...

Acromegaly is caused by excessive growth hormone (GH) secretion frequently due to GH-secreting pituitary tumors. Acromegalic tumors (ACRO) display reduced microvascular density versus normal pituitaries, suggesting they are under hypoxic conditions. Under hypoxia, tumors gain a survival advantage by stabilizing the transcription factor known as hypoxia-inducible factor 1 alpha (HIF1a). Western blot screening of ACRO (n=40) revealed significantly higher HIF1a protein l...

Somatostatin analogues (SSA) are the mainstay of pituitary-targeted pharmacological treatment in acromegaly, but are characterized by high incidence of resistance in half of cases. The successful management of acromegaly involves in addition to targeting biochemical control the treatment of the metabolic comorbidities and hypopituitarism. In this study we analysed the impact of the concomitant antidiabetic treatment and hormone replacement on the response to SSA. Data were col...