Early Detection and Diagnosis of Pituitary Tumors

Learn about the signs and symptoms of pituitary tumors. Find out how pituitary tumors are tested for and diagnosed.

Can pituitary tumors be found early?

Screening is testing for a disease in people who don't have any symptoms. For most people, screening for pituitary tumors is not recommended.

Sometimes a pituitary tumor is found early because a person has an MRI or CT scan of the head for some other reason. These tumors are sometimes referred to as pituitary incidentalomas, because they are found incidentally (by accident).

Incidentalomas might not need to be treated, as long as they aren’t causing any problems, although the doctor might recommend watching them over time to make sure they aren’t growing.

Functional pituitary adenomas (tumors that make excess hormones like prolactin or ACTH) are often found when they are still small because the excess hormones they make cause symptoms.

Non-functional pituitary tumors (tumors that don’t make enough hormones to cause symptoms) are less likely to be found early. These tumors typically don’t cause symptoms until they’ve grown large enough to press on nearby structures like nerves or parts of the brain.

If you’re at high risk

For members of families known to have an increased risk of pituitary tumors because of a genetic syndrome such as multiple endocrine neoplasia, type 1 (MEN1), doctors often recommend regular blood testing of pituitary hormone levels. These tests can often help find a tumor early so that it can be removed completely, which increases the chance for a cure.

Signs and symptoms of pituitary tumors

Pituitary tumors are often found because of symptoms they’re causing. Tumors that grow large enough can cause symptoms such as:

• Visual field defects (especially loss of peripheral vision)
• Trouble with eye movement, which can lead to blurred or double vision
• Progressive loss of vision
• Headaches
• Facial numbness or pain
• Dizziness
• Loss of consciousness (passing out)

Some pituitary tumors cause symptoms when they make excess hormones. Symptoms depend on which hormone(s) the tumor is making.

Tests for pituitary tumors

If a pituitary tumor is suspected because of symptoms or is seen on an imaging test, tests will likely be done to confirm the diagnosis.

If a pituitary tumor is found, other tests might then be done to learn more about it.

Are pituitary tumors staged?

For most types of cancer, staging is the process used to determine if and how far the cancer has spread. This is done to help guide treatment. But pituitary tumors are nearly always benign (noncancerous) and do not spread, so there is no staging system for them. Pituitary carcinoma (cancer) is too rare to have a staging system.

The most useful information for guiding the treatment of a pituitary adenoma is:

• Whether it is a microadenoma (smaller than 1 centimeter across) or a macroadenoma (1 centimeter across or larger). A centimeter is less than half an inch.
• Whether it has grown into nearby structures, such as bones of the skull
• Whether it’s causing symptoms such as vision changes, headaches, or problems related to changes in hormone levels
• Whether it’s functional or non-functional
• If it is functional, which hormone(s) it’s making