Will benign pituitary tumor recur?

Pituitary tumors are a relatively common type of tumor, but most of them are benign. Currently, the best way to treat benign pituitary tumors is surgical resection, which is very helpful for the patient's recovery. However, although benign pituitary tumors are benign and can be treated through surgical resection, what people are most concerned about is whether they will recur after surgical resection. The following will specifically introduce whether benign pituitary tumors will recur.

Can benign pituitary tumors recur?

Although benign pituitary tumors are sometimes completely removed surgically, there is still a possibility of recurrence.

What are the factors that affect the recurrence of pituitary tumor patients?

1. Characteristics of pituitary tumors

The recurrence of pituitary tumors is related to the size, texture, and invasiveness of the tumor. Pituitary tumors are generally located in the anterior lobe, and when they grow in the form of small nodules, it is the best time for complete surgical resection. If the patient is diagnosed late, when the pituitary tumor is too large and grows above the sella turcica, the tumor may break through the capsule or invade adjacent normal structures, making complete surgical removal difficult. In addition, for multiple pituitary tumors, the pituitary cells show nodular and diffuse growth, and surgery cannot achieve complete resection. This accumulates factors for the recurrence of pituitary tumors.

2. The extent of surgical resection of pituitary tumors and whether it is invasive

For general pituitary tumors, as long as the surgery is completely resected, the patient's postoperative recurrence rate is very low; however, for some invasive pituitary tumors, it does not have complete boundaries, and the tumor often surrounds the bilateral internal carotid arteries and invades multiple locations in the bilateral cavernous sinuses. It is generally difficult to achieve complete tumor resection during surgery, and recurrence is very likely at this time.

3. Surgical method

The choice of surgical method is generally based on a comprehensive decision made based on the volume of the patient's tumor, the degree of tumor invasion outside the sellar area, and the surgeon's proficiency in various approaches. The appropriate surgical approach is extremely critical to the extent of tumor resection. Currently, there are two main surgical approaches for pituitary tumors: transcranial and transsphenoidal. According to statistics, the recurrence rate of patients undergoing transcranial surgery for pituitary tumors is 30%, and the recurrence rate of patients undergoing transsphenoidal surgery is 7.75%-35%.

4. Whether to perform radiotherapy after pituitary tumor surgery

The recurrence rate for patients with pituitary tumors who underwent conventional radiotherapy after surgery was 8%, while the recurrence rate for patients who did not receive radiotherapy after surgery was 22%. The previous view was to perform radiotherapy after surgery, which resulted in many patients suffering from hypopituitarism and a poor quality of life. It is now believed that for general pituitary tumors, as long as the surgery is clean, radiotherapy is not required and close follow-up is required. For patients with large, invasive pituitary tumors and those with residual tumor after surgery, radiotherapy should be performed as early as possible after surgery.

Therefore, once a pituitary tumor patient shows recurrence symptoms after surgery, he or she must go to the hospital for diagnosis and treatment in time to avoid serious consequences for the patient due to delayed treatment.