Geographic-Related Differences of Pituitary Adenomas Hormone Profile: Analysis of Two Groups Coming from Southeastern and Eastern Europe

Abstract

We compared the immunoprofile of pituitary adenomas from Romania and Moldova. One hundred and eighty cases coming from Romania (94 cases, group 1) and Moldova (86 cases, group 2) were assessed by immunohistochemistry regarding all six basic hormones expressed in pituitary adenomas. Specific differences and similarities were found and stated for both groups. In group 1, 70% of cases were pituitary adenomas positive for one hormone, 13% were plurihormonal, while 17% were negative. In group 2, 50,3% of the cases expressed only one hormone and 12,5% were negative for all hormones. The highest difference was observed for plurihormonal adenomas, found in about 37,2% of cases for group 2 (2.86 times higher for group 2 compared with group 1). A higher incidence of GH-secreting adenomas characterized group “1,” while group “2” had the highest percent of LH-secreting adenomas, 55% of cases being positive. Triple association was noticed in 4.25% of cases of group 1 and in 8,13% out of total cases, from group 2. Four-hormone association was found only in group 2, noticed in 15,56% of the cases. The present paper highlights strong evidences of a particular and different immunoprofile of pituitary adenomas coming from Romania and Moldova.

Socioeconomic Predictors of Pituitary Surgery

“…The possibility that Caucasian patients are predisposed to particular subtypes of pituitary tumors may also explain their increased likelihood of requiring and thus receiving surgery, for example, for non-prolactinomas, or more rapidly-growing tumors that cause visual or endocrinological abnormalities [ 15 ]. There has been relatively little investigation thus far on the extent to which pituitary hormonal characteristics vary according to geography and race; however, a study by Cimpean et al found significantly different immunohistochemical and hormonal profiles in patients with pituitary adenomas in two separate European countries [ 23 ]. Their results may lend support to the concept of specific epidemiological factors affecting the biological characteristics of pituitary tumors.…”