Carcinoid and pancreatic endocrine tumors: recent advances in molecular pathogenesis, localization, and treatment.
Neuroendocrine tumors include carcinoids and pancreatic endocrine tumors, which share a number of common features in their pathology, ability to cause clinical symptoms due to ectopic hormone and bioamine release, localization methods, and treatment. Although generally slow growing, a proportion demonstrate aggressive tumor growth. Therefore, in many cases treatment must be directed against both the tumor and the hormone-excess state. There have been significant recent advances into their molecular pathogenesis, natural history, and prognostic factors; clinical presentation defined by larger series analysis; localization methods; and the development of new treatments directed against the tumor and to control the hormone-excess state (including depot somatostatin analogues, interferon combinations, embolization, chemoembolization, radiotherapy with novel somatostatin analogues, and liver transplantation). Recent advances in each of these areas are briefly discussed.
Jensen
R T
RT
Digestive Diseases Branch, National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892-1804, USA.
D002276:Carcinoid Tumor / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000209:etiology / Q000628:therapy; D018273:Carcinoma, Islet Cell / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000209:etiology / Q000628:therapy; D006801:Humans; D010190:Pancreatic Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000209:etiology / Q000628:therapy