Novel medical approaches to the treatment of pituitary tumors

Premise: Acromegaly should be treated by clinicians as not just a growth disorder, but also as a metabolic condition. That means developing a tailored approach that normalizes tissue-specific hormonal actions. All medical treatment regimens should have specific normal levels of hormones that might differ per patient. Unfortunately, the way to accomplish this has not yet been devised. Background: There have been no major breakthroughs in clinical neuroendocrinology, at least regarding pituitary tumors. Medical treatment of Cushing disease, prolactinomas, nonfunctioning pituitary tumors and thyroid-stimulating hormone-producing adenomas still relies on medications introduced 10 to 15 years ago. The only major breakthrough to impact current neuroendocrine treatment is in the field of acromegaly. This article presents a case history followed by a discussion of the mechanisms of the medical therapies for acromegaly. Copyright

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