The screening and management of pituitary dysfunction following traumatic brain injury in adults: British Neurotrauma Group guidance.

Pituitary dysfunction is a recognised, but potentially underdiagnosed complication of traumatic brain injury (TBI). Post-traumatic hypopituitarism (PTHP) can have major consequences for patients physically, psychologically, emotionally and socially, leading to reduced quality of life, depression and poor rehabilitation outcome. However, studies on the incidence of PTHP have yielded highly variable findings. The risk factors and pathophysiology of this condition are also not yet fully understood. There is currently no national consensus for the screening and detection of PTHP in patients with TBI, with practice likely varying significantly between centres. In view of this, a guidance development group consisting of expert clinicians involved in the care of patients with TBI, including neurosurgeons, neurologists, neurointensivists and endocrinologists, was convened to formulate national guidance with the aim of facilitating consistency and uniformity in the care of patients with TBI, and ensuring timely detection or exclusion of PTHP where appropriate. This article summarises the current literature on PTHP, and sets out guidance for the screening and management of pituitary dysfunction in adult patients with TBI. It is hoped that future research will lead to more definitive recommendations in the form of guidelines.

Extensive experience in the management of macroprolactinomas.

OBJECTIVES: Macroprolactinomas are pituitary tumours that can be managed with dopamine agonists (DA), surgery and radiotherapy. We aimed to assess the outcomes of these treatment modalities. DESIGN: Retrospective case-note study of patients managed in a single tertiary referral centre. PATIENTS: One hundred patients (68 male) diagnosed with macroprolactinoma between 1971 and 2009. MEASUREMENTS: We assessed the response to first-line treatment in terms of reduction in serum prolactin, endocrine status, symptomatic improvement and tumour shrinkage. Patients were divided into a group that received only DA therapy and a group that received surgery, radiotherapy or both, with or without a DA. We compared pituitary function at baseline and at last clinic visit between the two groups. RESULTS: In total, there were 1170 patient years of follow-up. Pituitary surgery was performed in 29/100 patients. Fourteen patients received pituitary radiotherapy (8/14 surgery also). At last clinic visit, the nonmedical therapy group had a higher risk of gonadotrophin deficiency (77·4% vs 44·8%, P = 0·0037), TSH deficiency (54·8% vs 25·4%, P = 0·0009) and ACTH deficiency (56·2% vs 17·2%, P = 0·0001). When last reviewed, 23/29 (79·3%) patients who underwent surgery and 10/14 (71·4%) patients who received radiotherapy were taking a DA. CONCLUSIONS: Treatment with a DA alone is associated with better outcomes in terms of pituitary function and as such represents the optimal first-line therapy for macroprolactinomas. Surgery and radiotherapy should be reserved for patients who are either intolerant of or resistant to DAs. Following surgery and/or radiotherapy, the majority of patients still require a DA for control of prolactin hypersecretion.

Discontinuation of long-term growth hormone treatment in adults with growth hormone deficiency: a survey of UK practice.

Objective: We conducted a survey of UK endocrine clinicians between June 2022 and August 2022 to understand current practices regarding GH treatment discontinuation in adults with growth hormone deficiency. Design and methods: Using Survey Monkey®, a web-based multiple-choice questionnaire was disseminated to the UK Society for Endocrinology membership. It consisted of 15 questions on demographics, number of patients receiving GH and current practice on GH treatment discontinuation. Results: In total, 102 endocrine clinicians completed the survey. Of these, 65 respondents (33 endocrinologists and 32 specialist nurses) indicated active involvement in managing patients with growth hormone deficiency. In total, 27.7% of clinicians were routinely offering a trial of GH discontinuation to adults receiving long-term GH therapy. Only 6% had a clinical guideline to direct such practice. In total, 29.2% stated that GH discontinuation should be routinely offered as an option to patients on long-term treatment, whilst 60% were not clearly in favour or against this approach but stated that it should probably be considered, and 9.2% were against. During the GH withdrawal period, most clinicians monitor signs and symptoms (75.4%), measure IGF-1 (84.6%), and complete a quality-of-life assessment (89.2%). Conclusion: The practice of offering a trial of GH discontinuation in growth hormone deficiency adults on long-term GH therapy is highly variable, reflecting the lack of high-quality evidence. Around a quarter of clinicians offer GH withdrawal for a number of reasons, but only a few have a local clinical guidance. A further 60% of clinicians stated they would probably consider such an approach. Methodologically sound studies underpinning the development of safe and cost-effective guidance are needed. Significance statement: In this UK survey of endocrine clinicians managing adults with growth hormone deficiency on long-term GH therapy, we explored for the first-time current practice and views on offering GH treatment discontinuation. In total, 27.7% of clinicians were routinely offering this option for a variety of reasons. Only 6% have local clinical guideline available to direct their practice on this. The majority of clinicians (60%), were not clearly in favour or against this approach but indicated it should probably be considered. In the absence of robust evidence on consequences of GH withdrawal, clinicians proposed monitoring of various clinical, biochemical and quality-of-life parameters during the period of discontinuation. Methodologically sound studies that will underpin the development of a safe, cost-effective guidance are needed.

Hypothyroidism following childhood cancer therapy-an under diagnosed complication.

To determine the prevalence of hypothyroidism amongst most adult survivors of childhood cancer in Britain using the British Childhood Cancer Survivor Study (BCCSS). The BCCSS is a population based cohort of individuals diagnosed with childhood cancer between 1940 and 1991 and who survived at least 5 years from diagnosis (n = 17,981). 10483, 71% of those survivors aged at least 16 years, returned a completed questionnaire, which asked if hypothyroidism had been diagnosed. Of the whole cohort, 7.7% reported hypothyroidism with the highest risk among patients treated for Hodgkin's disease (HD) (19.9%), CNS neoplasms (15.3%), Non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (6.2%) and leukaemia (5.2%). Survivors were more likely to develop hypothyroidism if they had received radiotherapy for HD (p = 0.0001) or a CNS neoplasm (p < 0.00005) but not leukaemia (p = 0.3). In these three patient groups, the frequency of hypothyroidism was similar in men and women. Survivors of irradiated CNS tumours reported a prevalence of hypothyroidism, which was substantially lower if discharged to primary care compared with being on hospital follow-up and which declined substantially with increased follow-up in both primary care (p = 0.004) and hospital follow-up (p = 0.023) settings. Hypothyroidism is a common finding amongst adult survivors of childhood malignancy. The substantial differences in reported hypothyroidism prevalence after irradiated CNS neoplasms suggests substantial under-diagnosis, which increased with increased follow-up, and which increased among those followed-up in primary care compared with hospital settings.

Hypothalamic-Pituitary and Other Endocrine Surveillance Among Childhood Cancer Survivors.

Endocrine disorders in survivors of childhood, adolescent, and young adult (CAYA) cancers are associated with substantial adverse physical and psychosocial effects. To improve appropriate and timely endocrine screening and referral to a specialist, the International Late Effects of Childhood Cancer Guideline Harmonization Group (IGHG) aims to develop evidence and expert consensus-based guidelines for healthcare providers that harmonize recommendations for surveillance of endocrine disorders in CAYA cancer survivors. Existing IGHG surveillance recommendations for premature ovarian insufficiency, gonadotoxicity in males, fertility preservation, and thyroid cancer are summarized. For hypothalamic-pituitary (HP) dysfunction, new surveillance recommendations were formulated by a guideline panel consisting of 42 interdisciplinary international experts. A systematic literature search was performed in MEDLINE (through PubMed) for clinically relevant questions concerning HP dysfunction. Literature was screened for eligibility. Recommendations were formulated by drawing conclusions from quality assessment of all evidence, considering the potential benefits of early detection and appropriate management. Healthcare providers should be aware that CAYA cancer survivors have an increased risk for endocrine disorders, including HP dysfunction. Regular surveillance with clinical history, anthropomorphic measures, physical examination, and laboratory measurements is recommended in at-risk survivors. When endocrine disorders are suspected, healthcare providers should proceed with timely referrals to specialized services. These international evidence-based recommendations for surveillance of endocrine disorders in CAYA cancer survivors inform healthcare providers and highlight the need for long-term endocrine follow-up care in subgroups of survivors and elucidate opportunities for further research.

Neurocognitive consequences of surgery and radiotherapy for tumours of the pituitary.

The management of patients with pituitary tumours requires a multidisciplinary approach utilizing a number of different treatment modalities that can impact upon pituitary function and may disrupt important areas of cerebral tissue that are important for normal neurocognitive function. Patients frequently report problems with memory and sustained attention that impact upon normal day-to-day life. At present it is unclear whether any causal link exists between treatments for pituitary tumours and abnormalities of memory and higher mental function. The domains of function affected in patients with pituitary tumours are memory and executive functions, which are involved in the control and direction of lower level, more automatic functions such as attention and motor skills. The evidence for disruption in these modalities is stronger for memory than for executive function. This may be due to variability in study design, insufficient tests and the potential inclusion of fundamentally different tumour types. The purpose of this review is to examine the available evidence to determine whether pituitary disease, its management, or subsequent complications are responsible for any neuropsychological deficits in pituitary patients. Furthermore we address methodological issues that may account for the apparent disparate neurocognitive data that exist in this patient group.

Hypopituitarism: clinical features, diagnosis, and management.

Hypopituitarism is characterized by loss of function of the anterior pituitary gland. It is a rare condition that can present at any age and is caused by pathology of the hypothalamic-pituitary axis or one of many gene mutations. The symptoms and signs of hypopituitarism may evolve over several years and be nonspecific or related to the effects of the underlying disease process or to hormone deficiencies. Investigation of patients requires a combination of basal hormone levels and dynamic function tests; management requires regular monitoring. The goal of physicians managing patients who have hypopituitarism is to improve their health and long-term outcome.

The effect of feeding frequency on insulin and ghrelin responses in human subjects.

Recent work shows that increased meal frequency reduces ghrelin responses in sheep. Human research suggests there is an interaction between insulin and ghrelin. The effect of meal frequency on this interaction is unknown. Therefore, we investigated the effect of feeding frequency on insulin and ghrelin responses in human subjects. Five healthy male volunteers were recruited from the general population: age 24 (SEM 2)years, body mass 75.7 (SEM 3.2) kg and BMI 23.8 (SEM 0.8) kg/m(2). Volunteers underwent three 8-h feeding regimens: fasting (FAST); low-frequency(two) meal ingestion (LOFREQ(MEAL)); high-frequency (twelve) meal ingestion (HIFREQ(MEAL)). Meals were equi-energetic within trials,consisting of 64% carbohydrate, 23% fat and 13% protein. Total energy intake was equal between feeding trials. Total area under the curve for serum insulin and plasma ghrelin responses did not differ between trials (P>0.05), although the hormonal response patterns to the two meal feeding regimens were different. An inverse relationship was found between serum insulin and plasma ghrelin during the FAST andLOFREQ(MEAL) trials (P<0.05); and, in the postprandial period, there was a time delay between insulin responses and successive ghrelin responses.This relationship was not observed during the HIFREQ(MEAL) trial (P>0.05). This study provides further evidence that the postprandial fall in ghrelin might be due, at least partially, to the rise in insulin and that high-frequency feeding may disrupt this relationship.

Vitamin D Deficiency in Traumatic Brain Injury and Its Relationship with Severity of Injury and Quality of Life: A Prospective, Observational Study.

This single-center prospective observational study aims to describe the prevalence of vitamin D deficiency (VDD) in the traumatic brain injury (TBI) population and identify any relationship between vitamin D and severity of head injury or quality of life. One hundred twenty-four TBI patients had serum vitamin D (25-OHD) levels measured at the local post-TBI endocrine screening clinic over 20 months. Quality of Life after Brain Injury questionnaires were completed by the patient concurrently. A multivariate regressional analysis was performed, controlling for age, season, ethnicity, time since injury, TBI severity, and gender. A total of 34% (n = 42) of the cohort were vitamin D deficient (25-OHD <25 nmol/L), with a further 23% (n = 29) having insufficient levels (25-OHD 25-50 nmol/L). Vitamin D was significantly lower in patients with severe TBI than in patients with mild TBI (n = 95; p = 0.03; confidence interval [CI] 95% -23.60 to -1.21; mean effect size 12.40 nmol/L). There was a trend for self-reported quality of life to be better in patients with optimum vitamin D levels than in patients with deficient vitamin D levels, controlling for severity of injury (n = 81; p = 0.05; CI 95% -0.07 to 21.27). This is the first study to identify a significant relationship between vitamin D levels and severity of head injury. Clinicians should actively screen for and treat VDD in head-injured patients to reduce the risk of further morbidity, such as osteomalacia and cardiovascular disease. Future research should establish the natural history of vitamin D levels following TBI to identify at which stage VDD develops and whether vitamin D replacement could have a beneficial effect on recovery and quality of life.

KLB, encoding ß-Klotho, is mutated in patients with congenital hypogonadotropic hypogonadism.

Congenital hypogonadotropic hypogonadism (CHH) is a rare genetic form of isolated gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) deficiency caused by mutations in > 30 genes. Fibroblast growth factor receptor 1 (FGFR1) is the most frequently mutated gene in CHH and is implicated in GnRH neuron development and maintenance. We note that a CHH FGFR1 mutation (p.L342S) decreases signaling of the metabolic regulator FGF21 by impairing the association of FGFR1 with ß-Klotho (KLB), the obligate co-receptor for FGF21. We thus hypothesized that the metabolic FGF21/KLB/FGFR1 pathway is involved in CHH Genetic screening of 334 CHH patients identified seven heterozygous loss-of-function KLB mutations in 13 patients (4%). Most patients with KLB mutations (9/13) exhibited metabolic defects. In mice, lack of Klb led to delayed puberty, altered estrous cyclicity, and subfertility due to a hypothalamic defect associated with inability of GnRH neurons to release GnRH in response to FGF21. Peripheral FGF21 administration could indeed reach GnRH neurons through circumventricular organs in the hypothalamus. We conclude that FGF21/KLB/FGFR1 signaling plays an essential role in GnRH biology, potentially linking metabolism with reproduction.

Cloning of the chicken pituitary receptor for growth hormone-releasing hormone.

Details of the regulation of GH in birds are unclear. In this report, a receptor was cloned from chicken pituitary cDNA with 61% amino acid sequence identity to the human pituitary GHRH receptor. Phylogenies inferred from sequence alignments support that this is the chicken counterpart of the GHRH receptor known in mammals. Northern blotting shows that this receptor message is expressed in chicken pituitary, with lesser amounts seen in hypothalamus and brain but not in liver. The recombinant chicken receptor binds human GHRH with high affinity and specificity and signals cAMP accumulation. Surprisingly, available peptides synthesized to the published sequence for chicken GHRH-like peptide (cGHRH-LP) were inactive at this receptor. To address this we recloned the cDNA for this cGHRH-LP from chicken hypothalami. The revised sequence encodes lysine at position 21, which is consistent with all reported GHRH sequences from other species but different from the originally published chicken sequence. When this revised cGHRH-LP sequence was synthesized, it had improved but still weak potency at the cloned receptor. Consistent with the activity at the cloned receptor, human GHRH was potent when assayed in live chickens or on chicken pituitary membranes, but cGHRH-LP was not. We conclude that we have cloned a putative GHRH receptor that is homologous to mammalian GHRH receptors and functionally expressed in chicken pituitary, but that the identity of the endogenous ligand remains unclear. The chicken GHRH receptor cloned in this study can serve as a tool to identify its ligand and to clarify the evolutionary development of the regulation of GH.

A Follow-Up Study of the Prevalence of Valvular Heart Abnormalities in Hyperprolactinemic Patients Treated With Cabergoline.

CONTEXT: Uncertainty exists whether the long-term use of ergot-derived dopamine agonist (DA) drugs for the treatment of hyperprolactinemia may be associated with clinically significant valvular heart disease and whether current regulatory authority guidelines for echocardiographic screening are clinically appropriate. OBJECTIVE: Our objective was to provide follow-up echocardiographic data on a previously described cohort of patients treated with DA for lactotrope pituitary tumors and to explore possible associations between structural and functional valve abnormalities with the cumulative dose of drug used. DESIGN: Follow-up echocardiographic data were collected from a proportion of our previously reported cohort of patients; all had received continuous DA therapy for at least 2 years in the intervening period. Studies were performed according to British Society of Echocardiography minimum standards for adult transthoracic echocardiography. Generalized estimating equations with backward selection were used to determine odds ratios of valvular heart abnormalities according to tertiles of cumulative cabergoline dose, using the lowest tertile as the reference group. SETTING: Thirteen centers of secondary/tertiary endocrine care across the United Kingdom were included. RESULTS: There were 192 patients (81 males; median age, 51 years; interquartile range [IQR], 42-62). Median (IQR) cumulative cabergoline doses at the first and second echocardiograms were 97 mg (20-377) and 232 mg (91-551), respectively. Median (IQR) duration of uninterrupted cabergoline therapy between echocardiograms was 34 months (24-42). No associations were observed between cumulative doses of dopamine agonist used and the age-corrected prevalence of any valvular abnormality. CONCLUSION: This large UK follow-up study does not support a clinically significant association between the use of DA for the treatment of hyperprolactinemia and cardiac valvulopathy.

The modulation of corticosteroid metabolism by hydrocortisone therapy in patients with hypopituitarism increases tissue glucocorticoid exposure.

CONTEXT: Patients with hypopituitarism have increased morbidity and mortality. There is ongoing debate about the optimum glucocorticoid (GC) replacement therapy. OBJECTIVE: To assess the effect of GC replacement in hypopituitarism on corticosteroid metabolism and its impact on body composition. DESIGN AND PATIENTS: We assessed the urinary corticosteroid metabolite profile (using gas chromatography/mass spectrometry) and body composition (clinical parameters and full body DXA) of 53 patients (19 female, median age 46 years) with hypopituitarism (33 ACTH-deficient/20 ACTH-replete) (study A). The corticosteroid metabolite profile of ten patients with ACTH deficiency was then assessed prospectively in a cross over study using three hydrocortisone (HC) dosing regimens (20/10 mg, 10/10 mg and 10/5 mg) (study B) each for 6 weeks. 11 beta-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase 1 (11ß-HSD1) activity was assessed by urinary THF+5α-THF/THE. SETTING: Endocrine Centres within University Teaching Hospitals in the UK and Ireland. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Urinary corticosteroid metabolite profile and body composition assessment. RESULTS: In study A, when patients were divided into three groups - patients not receiving HC and patients receiving HC≤20 mg/day or HC>20 mg/day - patients in the group receiving the highest daily dose of HC had significantly higher waist-to-hip ratio (WHR) than the ACTH replete group. They also had significantly elevated THF+5α-THF/THE (P=0.0002) and total cortisol metabolites (P=0.015). In study B, patients on the highest HC dose had significantly elevated total cortisol metabolites and all patients on HC had elevated THF+5α-THF/THE ratios when compared to controls. CONCLUSIONS: In ACTH-deficient patients daily HC doses of >20 mg/day have increased WHR, THF+5α-THF/THE ratios and total cortisol metabolites. GC metabolism and induction of 11ß-HSD1 may play a pivitol role in the development of the metabolically adverse hypopituitary phenotype.

Adrenal suppression in patients taking inhaled glucocorticoids is highly prevalent and management can be guided by morning cortisol.

CONTEXT: Up to 3% of US and UK populations are prescribed glucocorticoids (GC). Suppression of the hypothalamo-pituitary-adrenal axis with the potential risk of adrenal crisis is a recognized complication of therapy. The 250 µg short Synacthen stimulation test (SST) is the most commonly used dynamic assessment to diagnose adrenal insufficiency. There are challenges to the use of the SST in routine clinical practice, including both the staff and time constraints and a significant recent increase in Synacthen cost. METHODS: We performed a retrospective analysis to determine the prevalence of adrenal suppression due to prescribed GCs and the utility of a morning serum cortisol for rapid assessment of adrenal reserve in the routine clinical setting. RESULTS: In total, 2773 patients underwent 3603 SSTs in a large secondary/tertiary centre between 2008 and 2013 and 17.9% (n=496) failed the SST. Of 404 patients taking oral, topical, intranasal or inhaled GC therapy for non-endocrine conditions, 33.2% (n=134) had a subnormal SST response. In patients taking inhaled GCs without additional GC therapy, 20.5% (34/166) failed an SST and suppression of adrenal function increased in a dose-dependent fashion. Using receiver operating characteristic curve analysis in patients currently taking inhaled GCs, a basal cortisol ≥348 nmol/l provided 100% specificity for passing the SST; a cortisol value <34 nmol/l had 100% sensitivity for SST failure. Using these cut-offs, 50% (n=83) of SSTs performed on patients prescribed inhaled GCs were unnecessary. CONCLUSION: Adrenal suppression due to GC treatment, particularly inhaled GCs, is common. A basal serum cortisol concentration has utility in helping determine which patients should undergo dynamic assessment of adrenal function.

Low-dose growth hormone inhibits 11 beta-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase type 1 but has no effect upon fat mass in patients with simple obesity.

GH has potent effects on adipocyte biology, stimulating lipolysis but also promoting preadipocyte proliferation. In addition, GH, acting through IGF-I, inhibits 11 beta-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase type 1 (11 beta-HSD1), which converts the inactive glucocorticoid, cortisone (E), to active cortisol (F) in adipose tissue. Although F is an essential requirement for adipocyte differentiation, it also inhibits preadipocyte proliferation. We hypothesized that inhibition of 11 beta-HSD1 activity in adipose tissue by GH may alter fat tissue mass through changes in local F concentrations. We conducted a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study using low-dose GH (Genotropin 0.4 mg/d) for 8 months in 24 patients with obesity. Although GH treatment significantly raised IGF-I, we were unable to demonstrate significant differences in body composition or metabolic profiles between GH- and placebo-treated groups. In addition, there was no alteration in total fat mass over time in the GH-treated group [total fat mass 41.0 +/- 3.0 vs. 41.3 +/- 3.4 kg (8 months), mean +/- SE, P = ns]. However, in comparison with baseline values, systolic blood pressure increased (119 +/- 3 vs. 130 +/- 4 mm Hg, P < 0.05 vs. baseline) and serum F/E ratio decreased (6.1 +/- 0.5 vs. 3.9 +/- 0.5, P < 0.05 vs. baseline) in the GH-treated group only. Furthermore, although the urinary tetrahydrometabolites of F/E ratio fell in the GH-treated group, it rose in the placebo group (mean ratio change, -0.13 +/- 0.05 vs. +0.09 +/- 0.09, GH vs. placebo, P = 0.07). Treatment with low-dose GH in obesity fails to alter fat mass despite a significant elevation in IGF-I and a shift in the global set point of E to F conversion consistent with inhibition of 11 beta-HSD1.

The somatopause: an indication for growth hormone therapy?

Human aging causes adverse changes in body composition, a fall in bone mineral density, a deterioration in physical performance, a worsening cardiovascular risk profile, and increased morbidity and mortality. In addition, growth hormone (GH) secretion and serum insulin-like growth factor (IGF)-I levels fall. GH deficiency in adults causes similar changes to those observed with aging, which has led to the suggestion that the elderly are GH deficient and would benefit from GH treatment. Randomized controlled studies have demonstrated modest benefits when GH treatment has been used alone or in combination with exercise or sex steroids. GH treatment in adults over 60 years of age is associated with a high incidence of adverse effects, particularly peripheral edema, arthralgia, and carpal tunnel syndrome. Studies to date have been for a maximum of 12 months, so long-term safety data are not available in this setting. There are particular concerns over the links between the GH-IGF-I axis and the development of cancer in the normal population. Long-term studies are required to determine the efficacy and safety of GH treatment in older adults who are not GH deficient. At the present time, there are insufficient data on sustained efficacy, safety, or cost effectiveness to support the use of GH as an anabolic agent in adults over 60 years of age.

Outcome of Cushing's disease following transsphenoidal surgery in a single center over 20 years.

CONTEXT: Historically, Cushing's disease (CD) was associated with a 5-yr survival of just 50%. Although advances in CD management have seen mortality rates improve, outcome from transsphenoidal surgery (TSS), the current first-line treatment, varies significantly between centers. OBJECTIVES: The aim of the study was to define outcome including mortality in a cohort of CD patients treated with TSS over 20 yr. DESIGN: We conducted a retrospective cohort study of 80 patients who underwent TSS to treat CD between 1988 and 2009. In 72 cases, data on clinical features and outcomes were collected from medical records. In eight patients, records were unavailable, but in all cases mortality data were obtained from National Health Service (NHS) registries and recorded as standardized mortality ratio. SETTING: The study was conducted in a United Kingdom tertiary referral center. PATIENTS OR OTHER PARTICIPANTS: Adult patients confirmed to have CD participated in the study. INTERVENTIONS: All patients underwent TSS. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE: Patients were subdivided into groups based on disease response after initial treatment. Mortality according to subgroup was also assessed. RESULTS: Median follow-up for clinical data was 4.6 yr. Three outcome groups were identified: cure, 72% (52 of 72); persistent disease, 17% (12 of 72); and disease recurrence, 11% (eight of 72). Median time to recurrence after initial remission was 2.1 yr (interquartile range, 1.3-3.1 yr). Mean follow-up for mortality was 10.9 yr. Thirteen of 80 patients had died: five of 52 in the cure group, two of eight in the disease recurrence group, two of 12 with persistent disease, and four of eight of those followed up by NHS registry search only. Overall, the standardized mortality ratio was 3.17 [95% confidence interval (CI), 1.70-5.43], whereas in the cure group it was 2.47 (95% CI, 0.80-5.77), and it was 4.12 (95% CI, 1.12-10.54) for disease recurrence/persistent disease groups. CONCLUSIONS: We report long-term cure rates in excess of 70%. Mortality is increased in CD and may be higher in patients with persistent/recurrent disease compared to patients cured after initial treatment.

Health care use of long-term survivors of childhood cancer: the British Childhood Cancer Survivor Study.

PURPOSE: Survivors of childhood cancer are at high risk of chronic conditions, but few studies investigated whether this translates into increased health care utilization. We compared health care service utilization between childhood cancer survivors and the general British population and investigated potential risk factors. METHODS: We used data from the British Childhood Cancer Survivor Study, a population-based cohort of 17,981 individuals diagnosed with childhood cancer (1940-1991) and surviving ≥ 5 years. Frequency of talks to a doctor, hospital outpatient visits, and day-patient and inpatient hospitalizations were ascertained by questionnaire in 10,483 survivors and were compared with the General Household Survey 2002 data by using logistic regression. RESULTS: Among survivors, 16.5% had talked to a doctor in the last 2 weeks, 25.5% had attended the outpatient department of a hospital in the last 3 months, 11.9% had been hospitalized as a day patient in the last 12 months, and 9.8% had been hospitalized as an inpatient in the last 12 months. Survivors had talked slightly more often to a doctor than the general population (odds ratio [OR], 1.2; 95% CI, 1.1 to 1.3) and experienced increased hospital outpatient visits (OR, 2.5; 95% CI, 2.3 to 2.8), day-patient hospitalizations (OR, 1.4; 95% CI, 1.3 to 1.6) and inpatient hospitalizations (OR, 1.9; 95% CI, 1.7 to 2.2). Survivors of Hodgkin's lymphoma, neuroblastoma, and Wilms tumor had the highest ORs for day-patient care, whereas survivors of CNS tumors and bone sarcomas had the highest OR for outpatient and inpatient care. The OR of health care use did not vary significantly with age of survivor. CONCLUSION: We have quantified how excess morbidity experienced by survivors of childhood cancer translates into increased use of health care facilities.

Mortality in patients with pituitary disease.

Pituitary disease is associated with increased mortality predominantly due to vascular disease. Control of cortisol secretion and GH hypersecretion (and cardiovascular risk factor reduction) is key in the reduction of mortality in patients with Cushing's disease and acromegaly, retrospectively. For patients with acromegaly, the role of IGF-I is less clear-cut. Confounding pituitary hormone deficiencies such as gonadotropins and particularly ACTH deficiency (with higher doses of hydrocortisone replacement) may have a detrimental effect on outcome in patients with pituitary disease. Pituitary radiotherapy is a further factor that has been associated with increased mortality (particularly cerebrovascular). Although standardized mortality ratios in pituitary disease are falling due to improved treatment, mortality for many conditions are still elevated above that of the general population, and therefore further measures are needed. Craniopharyngioma patients have a particularly increased risk of mortality as a result of the tumor itself and treatment to control tumor growth; this is a key area for future research in order to optimize the outcome for these patients.

Aging and the growth hormone/insulin like growth factor-I axis.

Growth hormone release and IGF-I synthesis decrease with increasing age. The regulation of the GH/IGF-I system is dependent on the integrity of the hypothalamus, pituitary and liver. During aging there are several changes which contribute to the decline in GH/IGF-I including changes in signal to the somatotrophs from growth hormone releasing hormone, somatostatin and other factors such as body composition, exercise, diet and sleep. All of these factors are discussed in detail within this review. The phenotypic similarities between aging and adult growth hormone deficiency syndrome combined with this decrease in GH/IGF-I with aging have prompted the question whether aging is a GH deficient state. The advent of recombinant growth hormone has led to a number of studies treating elderly patients with GH alone or in combination with sex steroids or exercise. The results of these studies would not back up the use of GH in elderly non-hypopituitary patients as they did not show efficacy, showed high rates of adverse events and there is also some evidence associating GH/IGF-I and risk of neoplasia. If GH therapy is to be used in this cohort of patients further long term efficacy and safety studies are required.