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The Epidemiology of Prolactinomas

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Abstract

Prolactin-secreting tumors (prolactinomas), the most frequently occurring pituitary tumor, have a frequency that varies with age and sex. They occur most frequently in females aged 20 to 50 years old, at which time the female-to-male ratio is approximately 10:1. In the pediatric-adolescent age group, prolactinomas have a prevalence of 100/million population, and account for less than 2% of all intracranial tumors. Prolactinomas occur in approximately 30% of patients with multiple endocrine neoplasia type 1 and in this setting, they may be more aggressive than their sporadic counterparts. Patients with Carney complex or McCune-Albright syndrome may exhibit hyperprolactinemia due to a pituitary tumor derived from somatomammotropic cells that secrete both growth hormone and prolactin. Few familial cases of prolactinoma unrelated to MEN-1 are reported in literature.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Endocrinology, C.H.U. de Liège, University of Liège, Belgium

    Antonio Ciccarelli, Adrian F. Daly & Albert Beckers

  2. Department of Endocrinology, C.H.U. de Liège, University of Liège, Domaine Universitaire du Sart-Tilman, 4000, Liège, Belgium

    Albert Beckers

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  1. Antonio Ciccarelli
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  2. Adrian F. Daly
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  3. Albert Beckers
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Correspondence to Albert Beckers.

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Ciccarelli, A., Daly, A.F. & Beckers, A. The Epidemiology of Prolactinomas. Pituitary 8, 3–6 (2005). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11102-005-5079-0

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