Aggressive pituitary tumors (APTs) and pituitary carcinomas (PCs) are heterogeneous with regard to clinical presentation, proliferative markers, clinical course, and response to therapy. Half of... Show moreAggressive pituitary tumors (APTs) and pituitary carcinomas (PCs) are heterogeneous with regard to clinical presentation, proliferative markers, clinical course, and response to therapy. Half of them show an aggressive course only many years after the first apparently benign presentation. APTs and PCs share several properties, but a Ki67 index greater than or equal to 10% and extensive p53 expression are more prevalent in PCs. Mutations in TP53 and ATRX are the most common genetic alterations; their detection might be of value for early identification of aggressiveness. Treatment requires a multimodal approach including surgery, radiotherapy, and drugs. Temozolomide is the recommended first-line chemotherapy, with response rates of about 40%. Immune checkpoint inhibitors have emerged as second-line treatment in PCs, with currently no evidence for a superior effect of dual therapy compared to monotherapy with PD-1 blockers. Bevacizumab has resulted in partial response (PR) in few patients; tyrosine kinase inhibitors and everolimus have generally not been useful. The effect of peptide receptor radionuclide therapy is limited as well. Management of APT/PC is challenging and should be discussed within an expert team with consideration of clinical and pathological findings, age, and general condition of the patient. Considering that APT/PCs are rare, new therapies should preferably be evaluated in shared standardized protocols. Prognostic and predictive markers to guide treatment decisions are needed and are the scope of ongoing research. Show less
Burman, P.; Trouillas, J.; Losa, M.; McCormack, A.; Petersenn, S.; Popovic, V.; ... ; ESE survey collaborators 2022
ObjectiveTo describe clinical and pathological characteristics and treatment outcomes in a large cohort of aggressive pituitary tumours (APT)/pituitary carcinomas (PC). DesignElectronic survey... Show moreObjectiveTo describe clinical and pathological characteristics and treatment outcomes in a large cohort of aggressive pituitary tumours (APT)/pituitary carcinomas (PC). DesignElectronic survey August 2020-May 2021. Results96% of 171 (121 APT, 50 PC), initially presented as macro/giant tumours, 6 were microadenomas (5 corticotroph). Ninety-seven tumours, initially considered clinically benign, demonstrated aggressive behaviour after 5.5 years (IQR: 2.8-12). Of the patients, 63% were men. Adrenocorticotrophic hormone (ACTH)-secreting tumours constituted 30% of the APT/PC, and the gonadotroph subtypes were under-represented. Five out of 13 silent corticotroph tumours and 2/6 silent somatotroph tumours became secreting. Metastases were observed after median 6.3 years (IQR 3.7-12.1) from diagnosis. At the first surgery, the Ki67 index was >= 3% in 74/93 (80%) and >= 10% in 38/93 (41%) tumours. An absolute increase of Ki67 >= 10% after median of 6 years from the first surgery occurred in 18/49 examined tumours. Tumours with an aggressive course from outset had higher Ki67, mitotic counts, and p53. Temozolomide treatment in 156/171 patients resulted in complete response in 9.6%, partial response in 30.1%, stable disease in 28.1%, and progressive disease in 32.2% of the patients. Treatment with bevacizumab, immune checkpoint inhibitors, and peptide receptor radionuclide therapy resulted in partial regression in 1/10, 1/6, and 3/11, respectively. Median survival in APT and PC was 17.2 and 11.3 years, respectively. Tumours with Ki67 >= 10% and ACTH-secretion were associated with worse prognosis. ConclusionAPT/PCs exhibit a wide and challenging spectrum of behaviour. Temozolomide is the first-line chemotherapy, and other oncological therapies are emerging. Treatment response continues to be difficult to predict with currently studied biomarkers. Show less
Pituitary adenohypophyseal tumors are considered as benign and termed "adenomas". However, many tumors are invasive and a proportion of these exhibit an "aggressive behavior" with premature death... Show morePituitary adenohypophyseal tumors are considered as benign and termed "adenomas". However, many tumors are invasive and a proportion of these exhibit an "aggressive behavior" with premature death due to progressive growth. Only very rare (0.2%) tumors with metastases are considered malignant and termed "carcinomas". Taking into account this variability in behavior and the oncological definition, pathologists have proposed changing the term adenoma to tumor. Here we explain why use the term tumor instead of adenoma and identify tumor characteristics, associated with a high risk for poor prognosis. In a cohort of 125 tumors with aggressive behavior (APT) and 40 carcinomas with metastases (PC), clinical and pathological features were very similar. The comparison of this cohort (APT+PC) with a reference surgical cohort of 374 unselected patients clearly shows that the two cohorts differ greatly, especially the percentage of tumors with Ki67 >= 10% (35%vs3%; p < 0.001). A five-tiered prognostic classification, associating invasion and proliferation, identified grade 2b tumors (invasive and proliferative), with a high risk of recurrence/progression. Because half of the APT+ PC tumors have a Ki67 index >= 10%, and 80% of them show 2 or 3 positive markers of proliferation, we suggest that tumors that are clinically aggressive, invasive and highly proliferative with a Ki67 >= 10%, represent tumors with malignant potential. The percentage of grade 2b tumors, suspected of malignancy, which will become aggressive tumors or carcinomas is unknown. It is probably very low, but higher than 0.2% in surgical series. Early identification and active treatment of these aggressive tumors is needed to decrease morbidity and prolong survival. Show less
CONTEXT: Dopamine agonists are the treatment of choice for prolactinomas and symptomatic idiopathic hyperprolactinemia. However, the optimal treatment strategy and treatment duration is not clear... Show moreCONTEXT: Dopamine agonists are the treatment of choice for prolactinomas and symptomatic idiopathic hyperprolactinemia. However, the optimal treatment strategy and treatment duration is not clear in all details. OBJECTIVE: The aim of the study was to assess the effect of dopamine agonist withdrawal in patients with idiopathic hyperprolactinemia and prolactinomas. DATA SOURCES: PubMed, the Cochrane Library, the Web of Science, and EMBASE were searched electronically. No restriction was made with respect to language. STUDY SELECTION: Studies reporting the proportion of normoprolactinemic patients after withdrawal of dopamine agonist or studies in which this proportion could be calculated were eligible. Both observational studies and clinical trials were eligible. Nineteen studies were included in the meta-analysis, with a total of 743 patients. DATA EXTRACTION: Data extraction was performed by two reviewers independently. DATA SYNTHESIS: The pooled proportion of patients with persisting normoprolactinemia after dopamine agonist withdrawal was 21% in a random effects model [95% confidence interval (CI), 14-30%; I(2) 81%). Stratified analysis showed higher proportions of treatment success in idiopathic hyperprolactinemia (32%; 95% CI, 5-80%), compared with both microprolactinomas (21%; 95% CI, 10-37%), and macroprolactinomas (16%; 95% CI, 6-36%). In a random effects meta-regression adjusting for cause of hyperprolactinemia, a longer treatment duration was associated with treatment success (P = 0.015), whereas the use of cabergoline showed a trend of effect (P = 0.07). CONCLUSIONS: This meta-analysis showed that hyperprolactinemia will recur after dopamine agonist withdrawal in a considerable proportion of patients. The probability of treatment success was highest when cabergoline was used for at least 2 yr. Show less
Context: Dopamine agonists are the treatment of choice for prolactinomas and symptomatic idiopathic hyperprolactinemia. However, the optimal treatment strategy and treatment duration is not clear... Show moreContext: Dopamine agonists are the treatment of choice for prolactinomas and symptomatic idiopathic hyperprolactinemia. However, the optimal treatment strategy and treatment duration is not clear in all details. Objective: The aim of the study was to assess the effect of dopamine agonist withdrawal in patients with idiopathic hyperprolactinemia and prolactinomas. Data Sources: PubMed, the Cochrane Library, the Web of Science, and EMBASE were searched electronically. No restriction was made with respect to language. Study Selection: Studies reporting the proportion of normoprolactinemic patients after withdrawal of dopamine agonist or studies in which this proportion could be calculated were eligible. Both observational studies and clinical trials were eligible. Nineteen studies were included in the meta-analysis, with a total of 743 patients. Data Extraction: Data extraction was performed by two reviewers independently. Data Synthesis: The pooled proportion of patients with persisting normoprolactinemia after dopamine agonist withdrawal was 21% in a random effects model [95% confidence interval (CI), 14-30%; I-2 81%). Stratified analysis showed higher proportions of treatment success in idiopathic hyperprolactinemia (32%; 95% CI, 5-80%), compared with both microprolactinomas (21%; 95% CI, 10-37%), and macroprolactinomas (16%; 95% CI, 6-36%). In a random effects meta-regression adjusting for cause of hyperprolactinemia, a longer treatment duration was associated with treatment success (P = 0.015), whereas the use of cabergoline showed a trend of effect (P = 0.07). Conclusions: This meta-analysis showed that hyperprolactinemia will recur after dopamine agonist withdrawal in a considerable proportion of patients. The probability of treatment success was highest when cabergoline was used for at least 2 yr. (J Clin Endocrinol Metab 95: 43-51, 2010) Show less
