Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Cat with diabetes cured after pituitary tumor surgery
By Meij, B P et al.·Published in Journal of comparative pathology·2004·Department of Clinical Sciences of Companion Animals, Netherlands·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Somatotroph and corticotroph pituitary adenoma (double adenoma) in a cat with diabetes mellitus and hyperadrenocorticism.
- Species:
- cat
Plain-English summary
A 9-year-old male European shorthair cat with diabetes was brought in because he wasn't responding to insulin treatment. Tests showed he had a problem with his pituitary gland, which was producing too much cortisol and growth hormone. The vet performed surgery to remove the abnormal part of the pituitary gland, and afterward, the cat's insulin resistance improved significantly. This means he started responding well to his diabetes treatment.
People also search for: cat diabetes treatment · cat pituitary tumor symptoms · insulin resistance in cats · cat surgery for pituitary adenoma
Abstract
A 9-year-old castrated male European shorthair cat with insulin-resistant diabetes was referred with the preliminary diagnosis of pituitary-dependent hyperadrenocorticism, based on measurements of urinary corticoids. Further studies revealed not only resistance of plasma concentrations of cortisol, adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) and alpha-melanocyte-stimulating hormone (alpha-MSH) to suppression by a low dose of dexamethasone, but also elevated plasma concentrations of growth hormone (GH) and insulin-like growth factor I (IGF-I). Pituitary imaging with dynamic contrast-enhanced computed tomography demonstrated an enlarged pituitary gland and an adenoma. The cat underwent trans-sphenoidal hypophysectomy after which the insulin resistance disappeared. On histopathological and immunocytochemical examination of the surgical specimen a double adenoma was found, consisting of a corticotroph adenoma and a somatotroph adenoma separated by unaffected pituitary tissue.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/15003481/