Insulin-like growth factor-1 is essential to the increased mortality caused by excess growth hormone: a case of thyroid cancer and non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma in a patient with pituitary acromegaly

• Published in: Medical oncology (Northwood, London, England) Vol. 26; no. 1; pp. 62 - 66
• Main Authors: Taslipinar, A., Bolu, E., Kebapcilar, L., Sahin, M., Uckaya, G., Kutlu, M.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: New York Humana Press Inc 01.03.2009; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Acromegaly - drug therapy; Acromegaly - etiology; Adenoma - complications; Adenoma - metabolism; Adenoma - surgery; Aged; Antineoplastic Agents, Hormonal - therapeutic use; Antineoplastic Combined Chemotherapy Protocols - therapeutic use; Cyclophosphamide - therapeutic use; Ergolines - therapeutic use; Hematology; Human Growth Hormone - analogs & derivatives; Human Growth Hormone - secretion; Human Growth Hormone - therapeutic use; Humans; Insulin-Like Growth Factor I - metabolism; Internal Medicine; Lymphoma, Non-Hodgkin - drug therapy; Lymphoma, Non-Hodgkin - metabolism; Male; Medicine; Medicine & Public Health; Neoplasms, Multiple Primary; Octreotide - therapeutic use; Oncology; Original Paper; Pathology; Prednisone - therapeutic use; Thyroid Neoplasms - complications; Thyroid Neoplasms - metabolism; Thyroid Neoplasms - surgery; Thyroidectomy; Thyroxine - therapeutic use; Vincristine - therapeutic use; Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma; Acromegaly; IGF-I; Thyroid cancer; Growth hormone
• ISSN: 1357-0560; 1559-131X
• DOI: 10.1007/s12032-008-9084-9

The effects of growth hormone are mediated in part by stimulating the production of insulin-like growth factor-1. Insulin-like growth factor-1 has significant effects on cell proliferation and differentiation, it is a potent mitogen, and it is a powerful inhibitor of programmed cell death (apoptosis). Insulin-like growth factor-1 also has a well-established role in the transformation of normal cells to malignant cells. Case reports on a possible association between elevated growth hormone and cancer risk in a variety of patient groups have been published. Here, we describe clinical and laboratory findings for a patient with acromegaly who first developed thyroid cancer, and then, in the follow up period, probably due to poorly controlled insulin-like growth factor-1 levels, developed a large cell non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. A search revealed that a case with these peculiarities had not previously been reported.