Endocrine Abstracts

Objective: Currently, 2–3% of the population of the UK and US receive glucocorticoid (GC) therapy. Significant adverse effects are not confined to chronic use; recurrent short-course administration is associated with increased morbidity and mortality. The efficacy of GC therapy is not in doubt but data about the cumulative dose responsible for adverse effects during GC treatment are still lacking. The aim of this study was to test the impact of 7 days of 10 or 15 mg of Pr...

Introduction: GEP-NENs represent a heterogeneous group of neoplasms with increasing incidence in the last years. Pathogenesis and risk factors of sporadic GEP-NENs are not clear and still debated. The aim of this study is to evaluate the main risk factors for sporadic GEP-NENs in patients followed by the NETTARE Unit (NeuroEndocrine TAsk force of of ‘Sapienza’ University of Rome).Methods: We performed a case-control study including 32 consecuti...

Introduction: With the improved imaging techniques, Leydig cell tumours (LCTs) are frequently found, accounting up to 22% of testicular tumours. The natural history of LCTs is relatively unknown, because of the small size and heterogeneity of available studies. Since LCTs are often removed, long-term follow-up is missing. The aim of this study was to report the experience with a large cohort of prospectively collected LCTs.Materials and methods: Patients...

Introduction: Glucose metabolism impairment is a common complication of acromegaly. Somatostatin analogs (SSAs) are used as both first and second line treatment. The effect of SSAs on glucose metabolism in acromegaly is still debated.Aim: To address the following questions: 1) do SSAs affect glucose metabolism? 2) does the effect correlate with disease control? 3) do different SSAs – Lanreotide (LAN) and octreotide LAR (OCT) – affect metabolism...

Background: Hypothalamic-pituitary function and adipose tissue are deeply interconnected. Obesity has been linked to morpho-functional changes in several endocrine glands (thyroid, adrenal, gonads). No study has quantified the appearance of the pituitary gland in obese subjects.Aim: To measure pituitary signal intensity, homogeneity and texture of the pituitary gland at magnetic resonance (MR) in obese subjects free of focal pituitary disease.<p clas...

The well characterized sodium iodide symporter (NIS) in its dual function as reporter and therapy gene displays an outstanding opportunity to target different cancer types allowing non-invasive imaging of functional NIS expression and therapeutic radionuclide application. We recently reported induction of tumor-selective accumulation and therapeutic efficacy of radioiodide after systemic non-viral epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR)-targeted NIS gene delivery in a subcutan...

The tumor-homing property of mesenchymal stem cells (MSC) has led to their use as delivery vehicles for therapeutic genes such as the sodium iodide symporter (NIS), which has convincingly been demonstrated by our recent studies of systemic NIS gene delivery using MSCs as delivery vehicles in both subcutaneous and orthotopic xenograft mouse models. External beam radiation therapy (EBRT) represents a promising tool in the application of engineered MSC (eMSCs)-based gene therapy ...

Background: Sunitinib (SUN) is a novel oral multitarget tyrosine-kinase inhibitor (TKI) that has demonstrated its efficacy in the treatment of metastatic renal cell carcinoma (mRCC). The thyroid dysfunction is one of the most common side effects of SUN. The mechanisms inducing thyroid dysfunction are still poorly understood.Aim: Identify the incidence, severity, ultrasonographic changes and pattern of response of thyroid function tests during treatment w...

Introduction: The role of testosterone supplementation (TS) as a possible treatment for male sexual dysfunction remains questionable. The aim of the present study is to meta-analyse data evaluating the effects of TS on male sexual function and its therapeutic synergism with the use of phosphodiesterase type 5 (PDE5i).Methods: An extensive Medline Embase and Cochrane search was performed including the following words: ‘testosterone’, ‘erect...

Ageing in men is accompanied by a decline in serum testosterone (T) levels and increased risk of cardiovascular disease, osteopenia, visceral obesity and impaired metabolism. These conditions have complex aetiologies that may share a common pro-inflammatory state. We investigated the impact of T therapy on cytokines and angiogenic factors involved in atherosclerosis and bone loss, in hypogonadal men who underwent androgen replacement. We carried out a 6 months, randomized, dou...