Some reports indicate that as many as 88% of pituitary carcinomas are endocrinologically active, and adrenocorticotrophin hormone-secreting tumors are the most common.[1] Treatments for patients with pituitary carcinomas are palliative with the mean survival time ranging from 2 years to 2.4 years, though several case reports of long-term survivors have been published.[2,3,4,5]

STANDARD TREATMENT OPTIONS:[1]

1. Surgery.
2. Dopamine agonists, such as bromocriptine, pergolide, quinagolide, and cabergoline for PRL-producing carcinomas.
3. Somatostatin analogues, such as octreotide for GH-producing and TSH-producing carcinomas.
4. Adjuvant radiation therapy, which does not appear to change the disease's outcome.
5. Chemotherapy, which is of little benefit.

References:

1. Ragel BT, Couldwell WT: Pituitary carcinoma: a review of the literature. Neurosurg Focus 16 (4): E7, 2004.
2. Pernicone PJ, Scheithauer BW, Sebo TJ, et al.: Pituitary carcinoma: a clinicopathologic study of 15 cases. Cancer 79 (4): 804-12, 1997.
3. Sironi M, Cenacchi G, Cozzi L, et al.: Progression on metastatic neuroendocrine carcinoma from a recurrent prolactinoma: a case report. J Clin Pathol 55 (2): 148-51, 2002.
4. Landman RE, Horwith M, Peterson RE, et al.: Long-term survival with ACTH-secreting carcinoma of the pituitary: a case report and review of the literature. J Clin Endocrinol Metab 87 (7): 3084-9, 2002.
5. Vaquero J, Herrero J, Cincu R: Late development of frontal prolactinoma after resection of pituitary tumor. J Neurooncol 64 (3): 255-8, 2003.