canis - Articles
Pituitary gland: neoplasia
Introduction
- Pituitary tumors can be classified as :
- Non invasive adenomas, invasive adenomas Pituitary adenoma, or
- Adenocarcinoma Adenoma / adenocarcinoma (in the presence of metastatic disease).
- A study looking at necropsy of dogs with pituitary tumors showed the following incidence:
- 61% dogs with non invasive adenomas, 33% dogs with invasive adenomas, and 6% with carcinomas.
- Another classification of micro (< 1cm) vs macro (>1 cm) tumors has been derived from human medicine but is controversial due to variability in dogs’ conformation and size.
- Pituitary neoplasia can be silent (non functional) or secreting hormone (functional).
- Pituitary tumor can arise from different cell types:
- Corticotroph, somatotroph, thyrotroph (not reported in dogs), gonadotroph (not reported in dogs), lactotroph (one case report).
- The most common pituitary tumor in dogs is the corticotroph adenoma, which can cause pituitary- dependent hypercortisolism by overproducing ACTH.
- Signs: depend on tumor size (neurological signs such a obtundation, decreased appetite, seizures) and secretory properties (eg hypercorticism for ACTH producing tumors).
- Metastatic tumors have also been reported to the pituitary.
- Despite being benign, adenoma can still compress or invade neighboring tissues.
- Diagnosis: CT or MRI of the head.
- Treatment: options include surgery, radiotherapy.
Pathogenesis
Diagnosis
Subscribe To View
This article is available to subscribers.
Try a free trial today or contact us for more information.
Treatment
Subscribe To View
This article is available to subscribers.
Try a free trial today or contact us for more information.
Prevention
Subscribe To View
This article is available to subscribers.
Try a free trial today or contact us for more information.
Outcomes
Subscribe To View
This article is available to subscribers.
Try a free trial today or contact us for more information.
Further Reading
Publications
Refereed papers
- Recent references from PubMed and VetMedResource.
- Sanders K, Galac S, Meij B P (2021) Pituitary tumour types in dogs and cats. Vet J 270, 105623 PubMed.
- Pollard R E, Reilly C M, Uerling M N, Wood F D, Feldman E C (2010) Cross-sectional imaging characteristics of pituitary adenomas, invasive adenomas and adenocarcinomas in dogs: 33 cases (1988-2006). J Vet Intern Med 24(1),160-165 PubMed.
Other Sources of Information
- Lunn K L, Boston S E (2020) Cancer chemotherapy. In: Small Animal Clinical Oncology. 6th edn. Eds Withrow & MacEwen. Elsevier Saunders, St. Louis. pp 565-568.