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Background Acromegaly is a rare disease that is frequently associated with thyroid diseases. The exact prevalence of goiter and thyroid dysfunction remains uncertain. Objectives This study aims to provide a comprehensive description of the clinical, morphological, and biochemical features of thyroid disorder in Saudi patients with acromegaly and to establish its correlation with the activity and duration of the disease. Methods This retrospective study involved patients who were diagnosed with acromegaly during the period 2006-2023 in an outpatient endocrine clinic at a tertiary hospital. Results A total of 40 patients with acromegaly (27 males and 13 females) were identified and included in the analysis, with a mean age of 46.78 ± 13.76 years and an estimated duration of disease of 8.08 ± 6.43 years. Goiter was diagnosed in 28 patients (70.0%), including multinodular goiter (MNG) (70.0%), solitary thyroid nodules (14.2%), and thyroid cysts (14.2%). Primary hypothyroidism was present at 40.0%. Goiter was not correlated with estimated insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1) levels or disease duration. In 40 patients with nodular goiter, fine needle biopsies were performed in six cases; five nodules were benign, and one nodule was a follicular lesion of unknown significance (Bethesda III). Conclusions The patients with acromegaly have a high prevalence of nodular thyroid disorders and thyroid dysfunction. No cases of thyroid cancer were found in our study. The periodic ultrasonography assessment of the thyroid is needed for evaluating patients with acromegaly.
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The management of dopamine agonist (DA)-resistant prolactinomas unresponsive to second and third-line treatment is challenging and requires alternative medical therapy. The presence of estrogen receptors on pituitary tumors, and the variable behavior of pituitary tumors in the presence of estrogen, prompted investigation of the role of anti-estrogen in the treatment of DA-resistant prolactinomas. The goal of this paper is to perform a systematic review of the role of tamoxifen in the treatment of DA-resistant prolactinomas. A systematic review was conducted. Inclusion criteria were case reports, case series, and experimental studies using tamoxifen in DA-resistant prolactinomas. Exclusion criteria included review articles, DA-sensitive prolactinomas, and those that were not previously treated with DA. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics. For continuous data, the mean was used. For dichotomous data, frequencies and percentages were used. Data on 22 patients were extracted from the seven included studies. Twenty patients (90.9%) responded positively to the use of tamoxifen with a mean reduction in prolactin levels of 57.4%. Ten patients (45.5%) showed normalization of prolactin post-tamoxifen administration. Regression of tumor size and stability of tumor growth were reported in four out of 22 cases (18.2%). Combination therapy with DA and tamoxifen increased DA sensitivity and had a clinically significant inhibitory effect on prolactin secretion. Furthermore, tamoxifen may be considered an effective adjuvant for tumor size control. Therefore, further studies are needed to draw more clinically and statistically robust conclusions.
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OBJECTIVE: The objective of this report was to describe the demographics, clinical characteristics and outcomes of patients with cancer presenting with arthritis following chemotherapy in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. PATIENTS AND METHODS: This is a retrospective case series report. We included any patient ≥18 years of age with an established diagnosis of cancer who had received standard therapeutic intervention and was subsequently diagnosed with arthritis after developing rheumatic symptoms either during or after treatment. Patients with clinical evidence of arthritis at the time of their cancer diagnosis were excluded. RESULTS: Seven cases from different centers were identified. Breast cancer was the most common type of cancer reported. The diagnosis of arthritis was established by a rheumatologist. Bilateral involvement of the metacarpophalangeal and proximal interphalangeal joints was the most common presentation. The knee, back, shoulder and wrist joints were less affected. Following treatment, one patient experienced complete resolution of symptoms, four patients symptomatically improved and one patient had no improvement. CONCLUSION: Arthritis can develop both during and after treatment of a malignancy. Solid tumors seem to be more commonly associated with this phenomenon. In this case series, the prognosis was poor as the majority of patients developed persistent arthritis.
