| Purpose of the guideline: |
Pituitary adenoma is a prevalent intracranial neoplasm, with the majority displaying benign growth characteristics. The application of surgical intervention and/or pharmacological treatment typically results in successful remission for most patients. Nevertheless, a subset of pituitary adenomas demonstrates invasive growth patterns on imaging, exhibiting accelerated proliferation rates compared to typical tumors, and displaying resistance to conventional therapeutic modalities including surgery, pharmacotherapy, and radiation therapy. These refractory pituitary adenomas frequently exhibit early recurrence or regrowth following surgical intervention. In January 2018, the European Endocrine Society released the "European Society of Endocrinology Clinical Practice Guidelines for the management of aggressive pituitary tumors and carcinomas" with the objective of establishing standardized clinical recommendations for the diagnosis, treatment, and monitoring of refractory pituitary adenoma and pituitary adenocarcinoma. Nonetheless, certain deficiencies, such as ambiguous diagnostic criteria, persist, and the management of this condition remains a global challenge. Consequently, our collaborative group will develop the "Experts consensus on the diagnosis and treatment of refractory pituitary adenomas in China" to address these issues. |
