Bronchopulmonary neuroendocrine tumors (NETs) are malignant tumors that represent approximately 20% of all lung cancers. The therapeutic option for advanced or metastatic bronchopulmonary NETs is mainly palliation of symptoms; options need to be individualized and, therefore, rely on the knowledge of multidisciplinary teams. Somatostatin analogs have been widely used in NETs for control of horm...

Somatostatin receptor scintigraphy (SNS) with In-labelled somatostatin receptor analog is a standard procedure for the detection and staging of neuroendocrine tumors (NETs, APUDomas). NETs can be small and situated almost throughout the body. This heterogeneous group of tumors take up amino acids, transform them into biogenic amines (dopamine and serotonin) by decarboxylation, and store the ami...

Diarrhea is a common manifestation of gastrointestinal disorders. Diarrhea-induced losses of fluid and electrolyte could lead to dehydration and electrolyte imbalances, resulting in significant morbidity and mortality, especially in children living in developing countries. Somatostatin, a peptide hormone secreted by D-cells, plays an important role in regulating motility and intestinal Na(+) ab...

Neuroendocrine tumors of the pancreas (pNETs) are classified on the basis of their differentiation as well as the functional status. Current treatment options for non resectable disease include everolimus, sunitinib, somatostatin analogs and chemotherapy. A number of trials with novel compounds and drug combinations were reported at the recent ASCO Annual Meeting. Pasireotide is a novel somatos...

BACKGROUND Octreotide, a somatostatin analog, may be beneficial in the treatment of head and neck paragangliomas (HNPGLs). METHODS We conducted a nonblinded, prospective intervention study. During 1 year, patients received a monthly intramuscular injection of 30 mg octreotide. Pretreatment and posttreatment tumor volumes were assessed by MRI, urinary catecholamine secretion was measured, and ...

OBJECTIVE To investigate the in vivo and in vitro expression of somatostatin receptors (SS-R) on synovial membranes of patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA). METHODS The joints of 14 consecutive patients with active RA, 4 patients with severe osteoarthritis (OA), and 30 control patients were studied. The somatostatin analog [111In-DTPA-D-Phe1]-octreotide was used for in vivo SS-R scintigrap...

Gastric endocrine tumors associated with autoimmune chronic atrophic gastritis (gastric carcinoid type I) are almost exclusively benign lesions with little risk of deep invasion of the gastric parietal wall. For this reason, the role of octreotide in the treatment of these neoplastic lesions is controversial. Nine patients with more than five type I gastric endocrine tumors each <1 cm in size, ...

Treatment options of advanced neuroendocrine tumors (NETs) are unsatisfactory. Hence, innovative therapeutic approaches are urgently needed. Inhibition of histone deacetylases (HDACs) is a promising new approach in cancer therapy. While several HDAC inhibitors have already entered clinical trials, the effect of HDAC inhibition on NET has not been investigated. Therefore, we evaluated the antine...

BACKGROUND The increasing incidence and heterogeneous behavior of intestinal neuroendocrine tumors (iNETs) pose a clinicopathological challenge. Our goal was to decribe the prognostic value of the new WHO 2010 grading and the AJCC/UICC TNM staging systems for iNETs. Moreover, outcomes of patients treated with somatostatin analogs were assessed. METHODS We collected epidemiological and clinico...

Somatostatin is a powerful inhibitor of intestinal Cl- secretion. We used patch-clamp recording techniques to investigate the effects of somatostatin on low-conductance (23-pS) K+ channels in the basolateral membrane of human colonic crypts, which are an important component of the Cl- secretory process. Somatostatin (2 μM) elicited a >80% decrease in "spontaneous" K+ channel activity in cell-at...