Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
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Query: UMLS:C0021843 (bowel obstruction)
 9,927 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Most carcinoid primary tumors are small and do not cause symptoms until complications (e.g. intestinal obstruction) or symptoms and signs of the carcinoid syndrome occur. Therefore in most cases an assessment of the primary tumor and its metastases must be performed. To determine the value of somatostatin receptor scintigraphy (SRS) for localizing carcinoid tumors, we compared the results of SRS with those obtained with computed tomography (CT) and ultrasonography (US) in 22 patients who had not undergone surgery for removal of the primary tumor. We could not find an advantage of SRS over CT and US for detecting the primary lesions. Tumors > 2 cm in diameter were regularly detected using all methods. SRS was not superior to CT or US for the detection of liver metastases. SRS showed the liver metastases in 16 of 18 patients, whereas CT and US detected liver metastases in all patients. For localization of extrahepatic abdominal and extraabdominal metastases (lymph nodes, bone), whole-body SRS showed an advantage over CT and US. We conclude that SRS is not superior to CT or US for localization of primary carcinoid tumors or liver metastases, although it did prove successful for visualizing extrahepatic and extraabdominal tumor spread. Additionally, SRS is useful for identifying receptor-positive metastases that may be treated by somatostatin analogs. Thus SRS should be performed in patients with a known carcinoid tumor, except those with an appendiceal carcinoid measuring < 1 cm in diameter.
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PMID:Value of somatostatin receptor scintigraphy for preoperative localization of carcinoids. 866 12

Long-acting octapeptide somatostatin analogs can effectively control symptoms resulting from excessive hormone release in patients with endocrine tumors of the gastrointestinal tract, provided that these tumors and metastases show a high expression of the somatostatin receptor subtype 2. The presence of this receptor subtype on these tumors can be demonstrated by in vitro studies, but also in vivo using 111In-pentetreotide scintigraphy. In a few studies, significant antiproliferative effects of these drugs on these tumors have also been demonstrated. The effectiveness of octapeptide somatostatin analogs in the management of chemotherapy- related and AIDS-related diarrhea and in reducing postoperative complications of pancreatic surgery have also been demonstrated. These drugs have been used to decrease the output of enterocutaneous pancreatic fistulas and are prophylactically used to prevent the development of these fistulas. Octapeptide somatostatin analog therapy is widely accepted for the initial management of acute variceal bleeding in cirrhotic patients. These drugs are currently also being evaluated for the treatment of advanced hepatocellular carcinoma and malignant intestinal obstruction. Radiotherapy with octapeptide somatostatin analogs coupled to radionuclides such as indium-111, yttrium-90, and lutetium- 177 is currently being studied in phase I-III trials.
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PMID:Somatostatin analog therapy in treatment of gastrointestinal disorders and tumors. 1272 9