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Even though there is no evidence of malignant potential, transurethral resection is recommended together with long-term antibiotic prophylaxis for at least one year after resection. Prolonged antibiotic therapy is suggested due to the frequent finding of UTI as an associated or causative factor.
Treatment may include the following:
- Surgery with or without radiation
- Radiotherapy
Fast neutron therapy has been used successfully to treat salivary gland tumors, and has shown to be significantly more effective than photons in studies treating unresectable salivary gland tumors.
- Chemotherapy
Most patients with thyroid adenoma can be managed by watchful waiting (without surgical excision) with regular monitoring. However, some patients still choose surgery after being fully informed of the risks. Regular monitoring mainly consists of watching for changes in nodule size and symptoms, and repeat ultrasonography or needle aspiration biopsy if the nodule grows.
Some authors feel that all hepatocellular adenoma should be resected, because of the risk of rupture causing bleeding and because they may contain malignant cells. Current recommendations are that all hepatic adenomas should be resected, as long as they are surgically accessible and the patient is a reasonable operative candidate. Patients with adenomas should avoid oral contraceptives or hormonal replacement therapy.
Pregnancy could cause the adenoma to grow faster, so patients with hepatic adenomas should avoid pregnancy.
Treatment options depend on the type of tumor and on its size:
- Prolactinomas are most often treated with cabergoline or quinagolide (both dopamine agonists), which decrease tumor size as well as alleviates symptoms, followed by serial imaging to detect any increase in size. Treatment where the tumor is large can be with radiation therapy or surgery, and patients generally respond well. Efforts have been made to use a progesterone antagonist for the treatment of prolactinomas, but so far have not proved successful.
- Somatotrophic adenomas respond to octreotide, a long-acting somatostatin analog, in many but not all cases according to a review of the medical literature. Unlike prolactinomas, thyrotrophic adenomas characteristically respond poorly to dopamine agonist treatment.
- Surgery is a common treatment for pituitary tumors. The normal approach is Trans-sphenoidal adenectomy, which usually can remove the tumor without affecting the brain or optic nerves.
- Danazol is a steroid compound that has been labelled as an "Anterior pituitary suppressant".
There are three main treatments for Hürthle cell adenomas. Once the adenoma is detected most often the nodules removed to prevent the cells from later metastisizing. A total thyroidectomy is often performed, this results in a complete removal of the thyroid. Some patients may only have half of their thyroid removed, this is known as a thyroid lobectomy. Another treatment option includes pharmacological suppression of thyroid hormone. The thyroid gland is responsible for producing the thyroid hormones triiodothyronine (T3) and thyroxine (T4). Patients with suppressed thyroid function often require oral thyroid replacement (e.g. levothyroxine) in order to maintain normal thyroid hormone levels. The final treatment option is RAI abaltion (radioactive iodine ablation). This treatment option is used to destroy infected thyroid cells after total thyroidectomy. This treatment does not change prognosis of disease, but will diminish the recurrence rate. Also, Hürthle cells do not respond well to RAI. However, often doctors suggest this treatment to patients with Hürthle cell adenoma and Hürthle cell carcinoma because some Hürthle cells will respond and it will kill remaining tissue.
The treatment for hyperaldosteronism depends on the underlying cause. In people with a single benign tumor (adenoma), surgical removal (adrenalectomy) may be curative. This is usually performed laparoscopically, through several very small incisions. For people with hyperplasia of both glands, successful treatment is often achieved with spironolactone or eplerenone, drugs that block the effect of aldosterone. With its antiandrogen effect, spironolactone drug therapy may have a range of effects in males, including sometimes gynecomastia. These symptoms usually do not occur with eplerenone drug therapy.
In the absence of treatment, individuals with hyperaldosteronism often have poorly controlled high blood pressure, which may be associated with increased rates of stroke, heart disease, and kidney failure. With appropriate treatment, the prognosis is excellent.
Treatment (for hyperpituitarism) in the case of prolactinoma consists of long-term medical management. Dopamine agonists are strong suppressors of PRL secretion and establish normal gonadal function. It also inhibits tumor cell replication (in some cases causes tumor shrinkage) Treatment for gigantism begins with establishing target goals for IGF-1, transsphenoidal surgery (somatostatin receptor ligands- preoperatively) and postoperative imaging assessment. For Cushing's disease there is surgery to extract the tumor; after surgery, the gland may slowly start to work again, though not always.
Surgery is the only cure for parathyroid adenomas. It is successful about 95% of the time. Parathyroidectomy is the removal of the affected gland(s). The standard of treatment of primary hyperparathyroidism was formerly a surgical technique called bilateral neck exploration, in which the neck was opened on both sides, the parathyroids were identified, and the affected tissue was removed. By the 1980s, unilateral exploration became more common. Parathyroidectomy can now be performed in a minimally invasive fashion, mainly because imaging techniques can pinpoint the location of the tissue. Minimally invasive techniques include smaller open procedures, radio-guided and video-assisted procedures, and totally endoscopic surgery.
Before surgery is attempted, the affected glandular tissue must be located. Though the parathyroid glands are usually located on the back of the thyroid, their position is variable. Some people have one or more parathyroid glands elsewhere in the neck anatomy or in the chest. About 10% of parathyroid adenomas are ectopic, located not along the back of the thyroid but elsewhere in the body, sometimes in the mediastinum of the chest. This can make them difficult to locate, so various imaging techniques are used, such as the sestamibi scan, single-photon emission computed tomography (SPECT), ultrasound, MRI, and CT scans. sometimes parathyroid adenomas can be ablated by ethanol injection, guided by ultrasound.
Nipple adenomas are non-cancerous growths, which can recur if not completely surgically removed. There are reported cases of cancers arising within nipple adenomas, and following excision of nipple adenomas, but these are rare occurrences.
Wide, radical, complete surgical excision is the treatment of choice, with free surgical margins to achieve the best outcome and lowest chance of recurrence. Radiation is only used for palliation. In general, there is a good prognosis, although approximately 50% of patients die from disease within 3–10 years of presentation.
Patients treated with complete surgical excision can expect an excellent long term outcome without any problems. Recurrences may be seen in tumors which are incompletely excised.
Treatment includes spironolactone, a potassium-sparing diuretic that works by acting as an aldosterone antagonist.
Toxic multinodular goiter can be treated with antithyroid medications such as propylthiouracil or methimazole, radioactive iodine, or with surgery.
Another treatment option is injection of ethanol into the nodules.
Desmopressin will be ineffective in nephrogenic DI which is treated by reversing the underlying cause (if possible) and replacing the free water deficit. The diuretic hydrochlorothiazide (a thiazide diuretic) or indomethacin can be used to create mild hypovolemia which encourages salt and water uptake in proximal tubule and thus improve nephrogenic diabetes insipidus. Amiloride has additional benefit of blocking Na uptake. Thiazide diuretics are sometimes combined with amiloride to prevent hypokalemia. It seems paradoxical to treat an extreme diuresis with a diuretic, and the exact mechanism of action is unknown but the thiazide diuretics will decrease distal convoluted tubule reabsorption of sodium and water, thereby causing diuresis. This decreases plasma volume, thus lowering the glomerular filtration rate and enhancing the absorption of sodium and water in the proximal nephron. Less fluid reaches the distal nephron, so overall fluid conservation is obtained.
Lithium-induced nephrogenic DI may be effectively managed with the administration of amiloride, a potassium-sparing diuretic often used in conjunction with thiazide or loop diuretics. Clinicians have been aware of lithium toxicity for many years, and traditionally have administered thiazide diuretics for lithium-induced polyuria and nephrogenic diabetes insipidus. However, amiloride has recently been shown to be a successful treatment for this condition.
The tumor must be removed with as complete a surgical excision as possible. In nearly all cases, the ossicular chain must be included if recurrences are to be avoided. Due to the anatomic site of involvement, facial nerve paralysis and/or paresthesias may be seen or develop; this is probably due to mass effect rather than nerve invasion. In a few cases, reconstructive surgery may be required. Since this is a benign tumor, no radiation is required. Patients experience an excellent long term outcome, although recurrences can be seen (up to 15%), especially if the ossicular chain is not removed. Although controversial, metastases are not seen in this tumor. There are reports of disease in the neck lymph nodes, but these patients have also had other diseases or multiple surgeries, such that it may represent iatrogenic disease.
Wide excision is the treatment of choice, although attempting to preserve hearing. Based on the anatomic site, it is difficult to completely remove, and so while there is a good prognosis, recurrences or persistence may be seen. There is no metastatic potential. Patients who succumb to the disease, usually do so because of other tumors within the von Hippel-Lindau complex rather than from this tumor.
Parathyroid carcinoma is sometimes diagnosed during surgery for primary hyperparathyroidism. If the surgeon suspects carcinoma based on severity or invasion of surrounding tissues by a firm parathyroid tumor, aggressive excision is performed, including the thyroid and surrounding tissues as necessary.
Agents such as calcimimetics (for example, cinacalcet) are used to mimic calcium and are able to activate the parathyroid calcium-sensing receptor (making the parathyroid gland "think" we have more calcium than we actually do), therefore lowering the calcium level, in an attempt to decrease the hypercalcemia.
As metanephric adenomas are considered benign, they can be left in place, i.e. no treatment is needed.
Central DI and gestational DI respond to desmopressin which is given as intranasal or oral tablets. Carbamazepine, an anticonvulsive medication, has also had some success in this type of DI. Also, gestational DI tends to abate on its own four to six weeks following labor, though some women may develop it again in subsequent pregnancies. In dipsogenic DI, desmopressin is not usually an option.
A non-minimally invasive Hürthle cell carcinoma is typically treated by a total thyroidectomy followed by radioactive iodine therapy. A Hürthle cell adenoma or a minimally invasive tumor can be treated by a thyroid lobectomy, although some surgeons will perform a total thyroidectomy to prevent the tumor from reappearing and metastasizing.
A modified radical neck dissection may be performed for clinically positive lymph nodes.
Nephrogenic adenoma, also mesonephric adenoma and nephrogenic metaplasia, is a benign growth typically found in the urinary bladder.
It is thought to result from displacement and implantation of renal tubular cells, as this entity in kidney transplant recipients has been shown to be kidney donor derived.
This entity should not be confused with the similar-sounding "metanephric adenoma".
The appropriate treatment in contemporary western medicine is complete surgical excision of the abnormal growth with a small amount of normal surrounding breast tissue.
If suspected antenatally, a consultation with a paediatric surgeon/ paediatric urologist maybe indicated to evaluate the risk and consider treatment options.
Treatment is by endoscopic valve ablation. Fetal surgery is a high risk procedure reserved for cases with severe oligohydramnios, to try to limit the associated lung underdevelopment, or pulmonary hypoplasia, that is seen at birth in these patients. The risks of fetal surgery are significant and include limb entrapment, abdominal injury, and fetal or maternal death. Specific procedures for "in utero" intervention include infusions of amniotic fluid, serial bladder aspiration, and creating a connection between the amniotic sac and the fetal bladder, or vesicoamniotic shunt.
There are three specific endoscopic treatments of posterior urethral valves:
- Vesicostomy followed by valve ablation - a stoma, or hole, is made in the urinary bladder, also known as "low diversion", after which the valve is ablated and the stoma is closed.
- Pyelostomy followed by valve ablation - stoma is made in the pelvis of the kidney as a slightly "high diversion", after which the valve is ablated and the stoma is closed
- Primary (transurethral) valve ablation - the valve is removed through the urethra without creation of a stoma
The standard treatment is primary (transurethral) ablation of the valves. Urinary diversion is used in selected cases, and its benefit is disputed.
Following surgery, the follow-up in patients with posterior urethral valve syndrome is long term, and often requires a multidisciplinary effort between paediatric surgeons/ paediatric urologists, pulmonologists, neonatologists, radiologists and the family of the patient. Care must be taken to promote proper bladder compliance and renal function, as well as to monitor and treat the significant lung underdevelopment that can accompany the disorder. Definitive treatment may also be indicated for the vesico-ureteral reflux.
Polyps can be removed during a colonoscopy or sigmoidoscopy using a wire loop that cuts the stalk of the polyp and cauterises it to prevent bleeding. Many "defiant" polyps—large, flat, and otherwise laterally spreading adenomas—may be removed endoscopically by a technique called endoscopic mucosal resection (EMR), which involves injection of fluid underneath the lesion to lift it and thus facilitate surgical excision. These techniques may be employed as an alternative to the more invasive colectomy.