Bronchial Carcinoid

Carcinoid tumors Overview of Carcinoid Tumors Carcinoid tumors develop from neuroendocrine cells in the gastrointestinal tract (90%), pancreas, pulmonary bronchi, and rarely the genitourinary tract. More than 95% of all gastrointestinal... read more develop from neuroendocrine cells in the gastrointestinal tract (90%), pancreas, pulmonary bronchi, and rarely the genitourinary tract. Although carcinoids are often benign or only locally invasive, those affecting the bronchus are frequently malignant. Some carcinoid tumors are endocrinologically active; the likelihood varies by site of origin and is highest for tumors originating in the ileum and proximal colon (40 to 50%) and lower with bronchial carcinoids.

Half of patients with bronchial carcinoid are asymptomatic, and half present with symptoms of airway obstruction, including dyspnea, wheezing, and cough, which often leads to a misdiagnosis of asthma. Recurrent pneumonia, hemoptysis, and chest pain are also common.

Paraneoplastic syndromes Paraneoplastic Syndromes Paraneoplastic syndromes are symptoms that occur at sites distant from a tumor or its metastasis. Although the pathogenesis remains unclear, these symptoms may be secondary to substances secreted... read more , including Cushing syndrome Cushing Syndrome Cushing syndrome is a constellation of clinical abnormalities caused by chronic high blood levels of cortisol or related corticosteroids. Cushing disease is Cushing syndrome that results from... read more due to ectopic adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH), acromegaly Gigantism and Acromegaly Gigantism and acromegaly are syndromes of excessive secretion of growth hormone (hypersomatotropism) that are nearly always due to a pituitary adenoma. Before closure of the epiphyses, the result... read more due to ectopic growth hormone–releasing factor, and gastrinoma Gastrinoma A gastrinoma is a gastrin-producing tumor usually located in the pancreas or the duodenal wall. Gastric acid hypersecretion and aggressive, refractory peptic ulceration result (Zollinger-Ellison... read more (Zollinger-Ellison syndrome) due to ectopic gastrin production, are more common than carcinoid syndrome Carcinoid Syndrome Carcinoid syndrome develops in some people with carcinoid tumors and is characterized by cutaneous flushing, abdominal cramps, and diarrhea. Right-sided valvular heart disease may develop after... read more , which occurs in < 3% of patients with the tumor.

Carcinoid syndrome symptoms include

Chronic sequelae of carcinoid syndrome include

A left-sided heart murmur (mitral stenosis or regurgitation) due to serotonin-induced valvular damage occurs rarely with bronchial carcinoids (as opposed to the right-sided valvular lesions of gastrointestinal carcinoids).