Day One, Cushing’s Awareness Challenge

Posted on April 1, 2012 by MaryO

April Fool's Day

How fitting that this challenge should begin on April Fool’s Day.  So much of Cushing’s  Syndrome/Disease makes us Cushies seem like we’re the April Fool.  Maybe, just maybe, it’s the doctors who are the April Fools…

Doctors tell us Cushing’s is too rare – you couldn’t possibly have it.  April Fools!

All you have to do is exercise and diet.  You’ll feel better.  April Fools!

Those bruises on your legs?  You’re just clumsy. April Fools!

Sorry you’re growing all that hair on your chin.  That happens as you age, you know.  April Fools!

Did you say you sleep all day?  You’re just lazy.  If you exercised more, you’d have more energy. April Fools!

You don’t have stretch marks.  April Fools!

You have stretch marks but they are the wrong [color/length/direction] April Fools!

The hump on the back of your neck is from your poor posture. April Fools!

Your MRI didn’t show a tumor.  You couldn’t have Cushing’s. April Fools!

This is all in your mind.  Take this prescription for antidepressants and go home.  April Fools!

If you have this one surgery, your life will get back to normal within a few months. April Fools!

What?  You had transsphenoidal surgery for Cushing’s?  You wasted your time and money. April Fools!

I am the doctor.  I know everything.  Do not try to find out any information online. You could not have Cushing’s.  It’s too rare…  April FOOL!

All this reminds me of a wonderful video a message board member posted a while ago:

It’s Literally Impossible to Have Cushing’s

 

So now – who is the April Fool?  It wasn’t me.  Don’t let it be you, either!

 

 

 

 

Filed under: Cushing's, pituitary | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment »

A classification tree approach for pituitary adenomas

Posted on March 29, 2012 by MaryO

Summary

It is difficult to evaluate the recurrence and progression potential of pituitary adenomas at presentation. The World Health Organization classification of endocrine tumors suggests that invasion of the surrounding structures, size at presentation, an elevated mitotic index, a Ki-67 labeling index higher than 3%, and extensive p53 expression are indicators of aggressive behavior.

Nevertheless, Ki-67 and p53 labeling index evaluation is subject to interobserver variability, and their cutoff values are controversial. In the present study, the prognostic value of Ki-67 and p53 protein labeling indices and their correlation with clinical and radiologic parameters were evaluated using digital image analysis in a series of 166 pituitary adenomas in patients having undergone a follow-up of at least 6 years to evaluate the impact on the recurrence and progression potential of pituitary adenomas.

The data were analyzed using the receiver operating characteristic curve and classification and regression tree analysis. The results showed that, in the unstratified data set, the commonly used threshold of the Ki-67 index of 3% has a high specificity (89.5%) but a low sensitivity (53.8%).

Unsatisfactory performance results were obtained by performing receiver operating characteristic curve analysis on the p53 labeling index. On the contrary, the classification and regression tree analysis–derived tree demonstrated that each pituitary adenoma subtype has specific prognostic factors.

Specifically, the Ki-67 labeling index is a useful prognostic factor in nonfunctioning, adrenocorticotropin, and prolactin adenomas, but with different thresholds. In conclusion, our study emphasizes that the term pituitary adenomas includes different types of tumors, each one having specific prognostic factors.

Access the entire article here: http://www.humanpathol.com/article/PIIS0046817711004965/abstract?rss=yes

Filed under: pituitary | Tagged: , , | Leave a comment »

Dr. Theodore Friedman Will Return April 2

Posted on March 24, 2012 by MaryO
Dr. Theodore Friedman Will Return April 2

Dr. Theodore Friedman Will Return April 2, 2012

Have questions about thyroid issues?

Ask Dr. Theodore Friedman.

Theodore C. Friedman, M.D., Ph.D. has opened a private practice, specializing in treating patients with adrenal, pituitary, thyroid and fatigue disorders. Dr. Friedman has privileges at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center and Martin Luther King Medical Center. His practice includes detecting and treating hormone imbalances, including hormone replacement therapy. Dr. Friedman is also an expert in diagnosing and treating pituitary disorders, including Cushings disease and syndrome.

Dr. Friedman’s career reflects his ongoing quest to better understand and treat endocrine problems. With both medical and research doctoral degrees, he has conducted studies and cared for patients at some of the country’s most prestigious institutions, including the University of Michigan, the National Institutes of Health, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, and UCLA’s Charles Drew University of Medicine and Science.

Read Dr. Friedman’s First Guest Chat, November 11, 2003. 
Read Dr. Friedman’s Second Guest Chat, March 2, 2004.

Listen to Dr. Friedman First Live Voice Interview, January 29, 2009. 
Listen to Dr. Friedman Second Live Voice Interview, March 12, 2009. 
Listen to Dr. Friedman Third Live Voice Interview, February 13, 2011.
Listen to Dr. Friedman Fourth Live Voice Interview, March 12, 2012.

Dr. Friedman will return April 2, 2012.  The call in number with questions or comments is (646) 200-0162.

Listen live at http://www.blogtalkradio.com/cushingshelp

This interview will be archived afterwards at the same link and on iTunes Cushie Podcasts

 

Filed under: Cushing's, Interview, podcast | Tagged: , , , , , | Leave a comment »

New drug shows promise in patients with rare illness

Posted on March 24, 2012 by MaryO

Two in Montreal with Cushing’s disease were among 16 in international trial

By AARON DERFEL, The Gazette

Quebecers suffering from Cushing’s disease – a rare hormonal disorder – have some reason to be hopeful after a clinical trial conducted partly in Montreal has shown promising results of a new drug.

About 400 to 500 Quebecers have Cushing’s disease or syndrome, a disorder that produces tumours on the pituitary gland, leading to a spike in cortisol levels.

The excess cortisol can cause a wide range of problems, including obesity, hypertension and diabetes as well as sleep and mood disorders.

In some people, deposits of fat accumulate on the back of the neck and shoulders, an effect known as a “buffalo hump.”

Until now, surgery and radiotherapy have been the only options for many patients. However, a drug developed by Novartis Pharmaceuticals has been found to act on the tumours, cutting cortisol levels an average of 50 per cent.

In some patients – two of them from Quebec – cortisol levels returned to normal.

The drug, pasireotide, involves twice-daily injections. The treatment has yet to be approved by Health Canada.

“This study is very promising, especially for patients for whom complete surgical removal of tumours – the standard treatment for this disease – was not possible,” said Dr. André Lacroix, an endocrinologist at the Centre hospitalier de l’université de Montréal.

Lacroix and his colleagues tested the drug on four patients. In addition to the two who “experienced a complete regression of all symptoms” of Cushing’s disease, the two others reported drops in their cortisol levels and an improvement in their health, Lacroix noted.

The findings of the international study of 16 patients were published in the latest edition of the New England Journal of Medicine.

Pasireotide acts by binding to certain receptors on the tumours. Lacroix’s team has also carried out a separate study of another drug that targets a different receptor.

He suggested that using the two drugs together might prove even more beneficial, but this must be borne out by further research.

The ideal patients for the drug therapy would be those whose tumours are too small for surgery, Lacroix said.

Each year in Quebec, there are about 15 new cases of Cushing’s disease, and doctors at the CHUM treat about 150 patients.

aderfel@montrealgazette.com

© Copyright (c) The Montreal Gazette

 

 

Read more: http://www.montrealgazette.com/health/
drug+shows+promise+patients+with+rare+illness/6340316/story.html

 

 

Filed under: Cushing's, pituitary | Tagged: , , , , | Leave a comment »

Dr. Theodore Friedman Interviews

Posted on January 26, 2012 by MaryO

Theodore C. Friedman, M.D., Ph.D.Theodore C. Friedman, M.D., Ph.D. has opened a private practice, specializing in treating patients with adrenal, pituitary, thyroid and fatigue disorders. Dr. Friedman has privileges at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center and Martin Luther King Medical Center. His practice includes detecting and treating hormone imbalances, including hormone replacement therapy. Dr. Friedman is also an expert in diagnosing and treating pituitary disorders, including Cushings disease and syndrome.

Dr. Friedman’s career reflects his ongoing quest to better understand and treat endocrine problems. With both medical and research doctoral degrees, he has conducted studies and cared for patients at some of the country’s most prestigious institutions, including the University of Michigan, the National Institutes of Health, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, and UCLA’s Charles Drew University of Medicine and Science.

Read Dr. Friedman’s First Guest Chat, November 11, 2003.
Read Dr. Friedman’s Second Guest Chat, March 2, 2004.

Listen to Dr. Friedman First Live Voice Interview, January 29, 2009.
Listen to Dr. Friedman Second Live Voice Interview, March 12, 2009.
Listen to Dr. Friedman Third Live Voice Interview, February 13, 2011.

From http://www.cushie.info/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1146:dr-theodore-friedman-interviews&catid=10:media&Itemid=18

Filed under: Cushing's, growth hormone, Interview, pituitary, podcast | Tagged: , , , , , , | Leave a comment »

« Previous Page — Next Page »