When pituitary tumor surgery finds no tumor in the tissue
Original title: Prevalence and clinical relevance of negative histology after transsphenoidal surgery for pituitary neuroendocrine tumors.
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 was a look back at records of people already treated, not a new treatment.
The short version
Sometimes surgery for a pituitary tumor removes tissue that shows no tumor at all.
What was studied. Doctors looked back at 651 people who had pituitary tumor surgery through the nose, between 1996 and 2023. They checked how often the removed tissue showed no tumor, and what happened next.
What they found. No tumor was found in the tissue in 28.1% of ACTH tumors, 28.1% of prolactin tumors, and 11.4% of growth hormone tumors. This happened mostly with very small tumors. At 6 weeks, fewer of these people were in remission: 60% versus 93.2% for ACTH tumors, and 50% versus 79.3% for prolactin tumors.
What this means, and what it doesn't
What it could mean: A surgery report that says no tumor was found can mean the tumor was somewhere else than expected. In ACTH tumors, that mix-up explained 66.7% of the poor results. It was rare in prolactin tumors, at 6.7%, and was not reported in growth hormone tumors. If this happens, your care team may want more tests or more treatment. For growth hormone tumors, the outlook still looked good.
What it doesn't mean: This does not mean surgery failed for everyone with no tumor in the tissue. This was a look back at past patient records, not a test of a new treatment. It does not change the surgery you would get today, and it is not a promise of a cure. It also cannot tell you what will happen in your own case.
Source: PubMed, September 15, 2026 · Read the original
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