pituitary

To the left is a MRI image of a pituitary adenoma. Pituitary adenomas are usually benign, slow-growing tumors that form from cells in the pituitary gland. Pituitary adenomas account for around 15 percent of primary brain tumors. These adenomas are split into to seperate types based on their size. A microadenoma is less than 10mm in diameter and a macroadenoma is greater than 10mm in diameter. In the case of the pituitary tumor being malignant it would be called a pituitary carcinoma, which are rare. Pituitary adenomas can produce an active hormone in large amounts, in which case the patient would have symptoms of hormonal imbalance. The size of the adenoma can also cause symptoms in patients. If it becomes too large it can invade close structures and/or compress on other brain structures hindering their function. Pituitary adenomas can be treated with medical or surgical therapies dependent upon the nature and size of the tumor.