Differential expression of pituitary tumor-transforming 1 in triple negative breast cancer.

Women diagnosed with triple negative breast cancer can benefit neither from endocrine therapy nor from HER2-targeted therapies (1). We mined published microarray datasets (2, 3) to determine in an unbiased fashion and at the systems level genes most differentially expressed in the primary tumors of patients with breast cancer. We report here significant differential expression of the gene encoding pituitary tumor-transforming 1, PTTG1, when comparing the tumor cells of patients with triple negative breast cancer to normal mammary ductal cells (2). PTTG1 was also differentially expressed in bulk tumor in human breast cancer (3). PTTG1 mRNA was present at significantly increased quantities in TNBC tumor cells relative to normal mammary ductal cells. Analysis of human survival data revealed that expression of PTTG1 in primary tumors of the breast was correlated with overall survival in patients with basal-like type cancer, while within triple negative breast cancer, primary tumor expression of PTTG1 was correlated with recurrence-free survival in patients with basal-like 1 and mesenchymal subtype disease. PTTG1 may be of relevance to initiation, maintenance or progression of triple negative breast cancers.

A Silent Corticotroph Pituitary Carcinoma: Lessons From an Exceptional Case Report

Nowadays, neither imaging nor pathology evaluation can accurately predict the aggressiveness or treatment resistance of pituitary tumors at diagnosis. However, histological examination can provide useful information that might alert clinicians about the nature of pituitary tumors. Here, we describe our experience with a silent corticothoph tumor with unusual pathology, aggressive local invasion and metastatic dissemination during follow-up. We present a 61-year-old man with third cranial nerve palsy at presentation due to invasive pituitary tumor. Subtotal surgical approach was performed with a diagnosis of silent corticotroph tumor but with unusual histological features (nuclear atypia, frequent multinucleation and mitotic figures, and Ki-67 labeling index up to 70%). After a rapid regrowth, a second surgical intervention achieved successful debulking. Temozolomide treatment followed by stereotactic fractionated radiotherapy associated with temozolomide successfully managed the primary tumor. However, sacral metastasis showed up 6 months after radiotherapy treatment. Due to aggressive distant behavior, a carboplatine-etoposide scheme was decided but the patient died of urinary sepsis 31 months after the first symptoms. Our case report shows how the presentation of a pituitary tumor with aggressive features should raise a suspicion of malignancy and the need of follow up by multidisciplinary team with experience in its management. Metastases may occur even if the primary tumor is well controlled.

Telemedicine for neurosurgery consultations at a Pituitary Center of Excellence: Patient preference and willingness to proceed with surgery

Objective The purpose of this study was to evaluate pituitary tumor patient satisfaction with telemedicine, patient preference for telemedicine, potential socioeconomic benefit of telemedicine, and patients’ willingness to proceed with surgery based on a telemedicine visit alone. Methods 134 patients who had pituitary surgery and a telemedicine visit during the COVID-19 pandemic (4/23/20-3/4/21) were called to participate in a 13-part questionnaire. Chi-square, ANOVA, and Wilcoxon Rank Sum were used to determine significance. Result Of 134 patients contacted, 90 responded (67%). 95% were “satisfied” or “very satisfied” with their telemedicine visit, with 62% stating their visit was “the same” or “better” than previous in-person appointments. 82% of patients rated their telemedicine visit as “easy” or “very easy.” On average, patients saved 150 minutes by using telemedicine compared to patient reported in-person visit times. 77% of patients reported the need to take off work for in-person visits, compared to just 12% when using telemedicine. 49% of patients preferred in-person visits, 34% preferred telemedicine, and 17% had no preference. 50% of patients said they would feel comfortable proceeding with surgery based on a telemedicine visit alone. Patients with both initial evaluation and follow-up conducted via telemedicine were more likely to feel comfortable proceeding with surgery based on a telemedicine visit alone compared to patients who had only follow-up telemedicine visits (p=0.051). Conclusion Many pituitary patients patients are satisfied with telemedicine visits and feel comfortable proceeding with surgery based on a telemedicine visit alone. Telemedicine is an important adjunct to increase access to care.

Transcranial Sonography in the Diagnosis of Pituitary Tumor—A Direct Comparison With MRI

BackgroundTranscranial sonography (TCS) is a convenient tool for detecting certain brain diseases, such as brain tumors. Few studies have reported on the use of TCS in the area of Sella turcica. The accuracy and repeatability of Sella turcica with or without pituitary tumor is not clear.PurposeThis study aimed to investigate the feasibility and accuracy of TCS to measure the size of Sella turcica according to the measurement in MRI and determine its diagnostic performance in individuals with pituitary tumor.Materials and MethodsIn this cross-sectional comparative study, healthy volunteers and patients with pituitary tumor were enrolled for examination of TCS and MRI between October 2020 and July 2021. The transverse diameter (D1, cm) of Sella turcica and the volume of the pituitary tumor were measured by TCS and MRI, respectively, and compared by using Student’s t-test or Mann–Whitney test, using the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve to analyze the diagnostic value of D1 in TCS for pituitary tumor.ResultsA total of 75 healthy volunteers and 51 patients with pituitary tumor were evaluated. In healthy volunteers, the mean D1 was 1.30 ± 0.35 (range, 0.82–3.22) by TCS and 1.32 ± 0.29 (range, 0.94–3.02) by MRI (P = 0.054). In patients with pituitary tumor, the mean D1 was 2.0 ± 0.65 (range, 0.90–3.48) by TCS and 2.42 ± 1.0 (range, 0.80–4.70) by MRI (P = 0.000). The median measurement volume was 4.41 and 6.59 cm3 in TCS and MR, respectively (P = 0.000). The mean D1 was 1.31 ± 0.35 in healthy volunteers and 2.0 ± 0.65 cm in patients with pituitary tumor (P = 0.000). In the ROC curve analysis, the area under the curve was 0.836, and the optimal cutoff value (1.56) exhibited a sensitivity and specificity of 67.31 and 88.0%, respectively.ConclusionThe consistency between the two imaging technologies performed well in D1 measurement, while the volume of the pituitary tumor was smaller as assessed by TCS than by MRI. D1 in TCS had good diagnostic performance in pituitary tumor.

The prevalence rate of hypopituitarism in patients with pituitary macroadenomas with various hormonal activities

Rationale: According to the recent epidemiological studies, prevalence of pituitary tumors amounts to 1 per 865 to 2688 adults. The prevalence rates of hypopituitarism in pituitary macroadenomas are highly variable and comprise 37% to 85% among newly diagnosed non-functioning pituitary adenomas (NFPA). There is virtually no data on the prevalence of hypopituitarism in the cohort of newly diagnosed macroadenomas secreting prolactin and somatotropic hormone.Aim: To assess the prevalence of hypopituitarism in patients with pituitary macroadenomas with various hormonal activities and to identify its potential risk factors.Materials and methods: We analyzed data from 293 patients with pituitary macroadenomas with various hormonal activities: NFPA (n = 121), prolactinomas (n = 59), and somatotropinomas (n = 113). The patients had been examined before any treatment was commenced.Results: The prevalence rate of hypopituitarism was 59/121 (39.9%) among the patients with NFPA, 18/59 (27.3%) among those with prolactinomas, and 19/113 (14%) among those with somatotropinomas (р < 0.001). The symptoms of chiasmal compression and chiasmal syndrome were significantly more prevalent in the patients with hypopituitarism, than in those without it in all subgroups. The relative risk of hypopituitarism in the patients with chiasmal compression was 2.10 for NFPA (95% confidence interval (CI) 1.50–2.95, р = 0.003), 1.667 for prolactinomas (95% CI 1.29–2.18, р = 0.005), and 1.45 for somatotropinomas (95% CI 1.56–2.48, р = 0.001). The relative risk of hypopituitarism in the patients with chiasmal syndrome was 1.66 for NFPA (95% CI 1.26–2.18, р = 0.009), 2.08 for prolactinomas (95% CI 1.60– 2.69, р = 0.001), and 1.97 for somatotropinomas (95% CI 1.56–2.48, р = 0.005). The NFPA subgroup had the highest rate of hypothyroidism (36/59, 61.0%), whereas the prolactinoma subgroup had the highest rate of secondary hypogonadism (34/59, 57.6%); however, hypogonadism is one of the manifestations of persistent pathological hyperprolactinemia typical for prolactinomas. In the somatotropinoma subgroup, secondary hypothyroidism was found in 11/19 (57.9%) of the patients.Conclusion: Identification of hypopituitarism before any treatment depended on the type of hormonal activity of a pituitary tumor and was most frequent in NFPA. The risk factors for hypopituitarism were chiasmal compression, chiasmal syndrome, vertical diameter of the pituitary tumor, and its volume. Secondary adrenal insufficiency, being the most hazardous component of hypopituitarism, manifested most rarely.

EPID-14. EPIDEMIOLOGY OF ADULT PITUITARY TUMORS IN THE U.S. ACCORDING TO THE 2017 WHO CLASSIFICATION OF ENDOCRINOLOGY TUMOURS

INTRODUCTION Among adult intracranial tumors, the pituitary represents a frequent site of origin. We examine their contemporary epidemiology with a particular focus on uncommon pituitary tumor types. METHODS Adult patients presenting with pituitary or sellar tumors between 2004-2017 were identified from the U.S. National Cancer Database (comprising &gt;70% of newly-diagnosed cancers). Their epidemiology was assessed in the context of the 2017 WHO Classification of Endocrine Tumours. RESULTS 12.5% of adult intracranial tumors arose in the pituitary region. 113,352 adults with pituitary tumors were identified. Histopathological diagnosis was obtained in only 59% of cases, in which 93% were pituitary adenomas and 6% were craniopharyngiomas. Among craniopharyngiomas, 71% were adamantinomatous and 29% were papillary, between which there were no differences in age, sex, or tumor size—however, papillary craniopharyngiomas were less common among Black nonHispanic patients (p&lt; 0.001). Among the remaining 1% (n=680) of pituitary tumors, posterior pituitary tumors comprised 21%, chordomas 16%, meningiomas 15%, pituitary carcinomas 11%, GCTs 10%, hematolymphoid 8%, other mesenchymal and stromal 7%, neuronal/paraneuronal 6%, and schwannoma 4%. Meningiomas (84%), mesenchymal/stromal (64%), and neuronal/paraneuronal (64%) tumors displayed a female predominance, whereas GCTs (75%) and pituitary carcinomas (62%) exhibited a male predominance. Age at diagnosis, tumor size, and race/ethnicity varied widely across uncommon tumor types. We further examined the subtypes of uncommon pituitary tumors: for sellar chordomas, 19% were chordoid and none were dedifferentiated; for sellar meningiomas, 94% were grade I; for pituitary GCTs, 79% were pure germinomas; for hematolymphoid, 52% were DLBCL, 11% were plasmacytomas, and 9% were Langerhans cell histiocytosis; for neuronal/paraneuronal, 64% were gangliocytomas; and for mesenchymal tumors, 53% were vascular and 16% were SFTs/HPCs. CONCLUSIONS Using national registry data, we provide a detailed dissection of the epidemiology of adult pituitary tumors, with a particular focus on examining uncommon pituitary tumor types in the context of WHO2017.