A rare pituitary tumor found in a woman with half a thyroid
Original title: Case Report: Development of a thyrotropinoma in a patient with thyroid hemiagenesis.
How far along is this research?
- Lab cells
- Animals
- Review
- Tested in people
This was tested in people. That is the most reliable kind of research we share.
This is a report about one patient, not a tested new treatment.
The short version
Doctors found a rare pituitary gland tumor in a woman born with only one thyroid lobe.
What was studied. This is a report about one patient. She was a 30-year-old woman born with only one thyroid lobe. Doctors followed her care over several years.
What they found. She started thyroid medicine in early pregnancy, and the dose was raised over the years. She then had signs of too much thyroid hormone, yet a pituitary hormone called TSH stayed high. A scan found an 11mm growth in her pituitary gland, and surgery confirmed a tumor that made TSH.
What this means, and what it doesn't
What it could mean: This pattern of test results can be a clue for doctors. If you take thyroid medicine and your levels look mixed up, it is fair to ask what else could explain it. In this case, surgery removed the growth, and she went back on thyroid medicine after.
What it doesn't mean: This is one patient's story, not a study. It does not prove that a missing thyroid lobe causes pituitary tumors. This kind of tumor is very rare. There is no new treatment here, and this is not a promise of a cure.
Source: PubMed, August 27, 2026 · Read the original
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