title: The multiple endocrine neoplasia syndromes.
abstract: Multiple endocrine neoplasia (MEN) type 1 and type 2 exhibit an autosomal dominant pattern of inheritance. In the past two decades the germline mutations that cause these inherited syndromes have been identified. The large majority of patients with MEN1 have mutations in the menin gene. Mutations in the REarranged during Transfection (RET) gene cause MEN2A, MEN2B, and familial medullary thyroid carcinoma (FMTC). Specific codon mutations within RET correlate with disease phenotype and severity. Also, children from families with MEN2A, MEN2B, or FMTC, who are found to have inherited a mutated RET allele, can be managed by prophylactic thyroidectomy, thus preventing the development of medullary thyroid carcinoma (MTC), the dominant endocrinopathy in patients with these hereditary syndromes. New insights into the molecular pathway of RET signal transduction are leading to novel targeted therapies in patients with locally advanced or metastatic hereditary MTC.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medicine, Division of Endocrinology, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, Tennessee 37232, USA.
authors.forename: Vipul T
authors.initials: VT
authors.lastname: Lakhani
authors.forename: Y Nancy
authors.initials: YN
authors.lastname: You
authors.forename: Samuel A
authors.initials: SA
authors.lastname: Wells
mesh_terms: D006801:Humans; D009377:Multiple Endocrine Neoplasia / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000235:genetics / Q000628:therapy; D011518:Proto-Oncogene Proteins / Q000235:genetics
chemical_list: C105373:MEN1 protein, human; D011518:Proto-Oncogene Proteins