Purpose: To assess the feasibility of somatostatin receptor scintigraphy for patients with Cushing's syndrome caused by tumors secreting ectopic corticotropin or corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH).
Patients and methods: Ten patients with Cushing's syndrome, nine with ectopic corticotropin-secreting tumors and one with a CRH-secreting tumor, were consecutively studied. For comparison purposes, eight patients with corticotropin-secreting pituitary tumors and one patient with an autonomous adrenal adenoma were investigated. In vivo tumor localization was performed for all patients using a radionuclide-coupled somatostatin analog. The results obtained with this technique were compared with those obtained with conventional imaging techniques. For some patients, the clinical effects of octreotide therapy were evaluated.
Results: Somatostatin analog scintigraphy successfully identified the primary ectopic corticotropin-secreting and CRH-secreting tumors or their metastases, or both, in 8 of 10 patients; in 2 patients with corticotropin-secreting bronchial carcinoids, the tumors could not be visualized. Normal scans were obtained for the 8 patients with corticotropin-secreting pituitary tumors and the one patient with an adrenal adenoma.
Conclusion: Somatostatin analog scintigraphy can be included as a diagnostic step in the workup of Cushing's syndrome patients with a suspected ectopic corticotropin-secreting tumor or a CRH-secreting tumor.