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  1. Basics
  2. Symptoms
  3. Diagnosis
  4. Treatment
  5. Prevention

Our Approach

Endocrine Center has one of the nation’s few programs dedicated to providing personalized care for benign (not cancer) and malignant (cancer) adrenal diseases, a group of complex and diverse disorders. Many doctors outside are not familiar with adrenal disease, and most see only a few cases over their careers.

Our renowned experts diagnose and treat hundreds of patients with adrenal disease each year, giving us a remarkable level of experience and expertise that translates into exemplary care. Your personal team of specialists, which may include endocrinologists, surgeons, nuclear medicine physicians, medical oncologists and radiation oncologists, meets regularly and communicates closely. They work together – and with you – to be sure you receive the best care.

Advanced diagnosis and research

Accurate diagnosis of adrenal disease is often challenging, and it requires a high degree of skill and experience. Excellent laboratories provide a range of specialized approaches, including radiographic scanning, adreno-venous sampling and biochemical testing, to diagnose and determine the extent of disease. And, since many adrenal diseases are inherited, we offer comprehensive genetic testing and counseling.

Your treatment includes the most-advanced methods with the least impact on the body, including targeted therapies and nuclear medicine approaches. If surgery is necessary, our skillful surgeons are often able to perform less-invasive procedures.

Because some adrenal diseases are rare, clinical trials can be difficult to find. As one of the nation’s premier programs, we offer research studies of innovative advancements that may be your best treatment option for certain adrenal diseases, such as adrenal cancer and malignant pheochromocytomas and paragangliomas.

Adrenal diseases may or may not cause symptoms, which depend on the type of hormone made by the tumor. If you have an adrenal disease, your symptoms may include:

  • High blood pressure (hypertension)
  • Women: Excess facial and body hair, deep voice or problems with menstruation
  • Men: breast tenderness or enlargement, lowered sex drive and/or erectile dysfunction
  • Excess fat in the upper back between the shoulders or in the neck
  • Round, full face shape, also called “moon” face
  • Thin skin that bruises easily and heals slowly
  • Purple-red stretch marks on the belly, thighs or breasts
  • Fatigue
  • Muscle weakness or spasms
  • Weight gain or loss
  • Diabetes
  • Insomnia or other sleep disorders
  • Low potassium levels
  • Headache
  • Rapid or irregular heartbeats
  • Feelings of anxiety, panic, fear
  • Pallor (paleness)
  • Dizziness/lightheadedness with standing
  • Tremor
  • Sweating
  • Temporary/intermittent paralysis (rare)

These symptoms do not always mean you have an adrenal disease. However, it is important to discuss any symptoms with your doctor, since they may signal other health problems.

Adrenal diseases are diverse and can be challenging to diagnose. It is essential that an endocrinologist familiar with adrenal disease recommends which tests you should have and analyzes your test results.

The experts have a high level of expertise in diagnosing adrenal diseases. They use the latest techniques and technology to give you the most accurate and concise diagnosis possible, including radiographic scanning, adreno-venous sampling and biochemical testing. Comprehensive genetic testing and counseling are available if your family members have certain inherited disorders.

If you have symptoms that might signal an adrenal disease, your doctor will examine you and ask you questions about your health and your medical history. One or more of the following tests may be used to find out if you have an adrenal disease or if treatment is working.

Blood tests to evaluate levels of certain hormones, including cortisol, aldosterone, plasma metanephrines and dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA), or chemicals such as sodium and potassium.

Urine tests, which may include 24-hour urine collection tests.

Imaging tests, which may include:

  • CT or CAT (computed axial tomography) scans
  • MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) scans
  • Nuclear medicine PET (positron emission tomography)
  • MIBG (meta-iodobenzylguanidine) scans

Our Treatment Approach

Because experts care for more patients with adrenal disease than most other programs, they have a higher level of experience that can have a direct impact on your chance for successful treatment.

Our renowned endocrinologists are among the most skilled and recognized in the world. They work with teams of other specialists to offer you the most advanced treatment with the least impact on the body.

Accomplished surgeons perform a large number of surgeries for adrenal disorders each year, using the least invasive and most effective techniques. They are highly skilled in minimally invasive laparoscopic procedures, which may result in shorter hospital stays, less blood loss and shorter recovery times than with standard surgery techniques.

We are at the forefront of discovering new advancements in treatment of adrenal disease. This means we are able to offer clinical trials for some adrenal diseases, which may not be available at other centers.

Adrenal Disease Treatments

If you are diagnosed with adrenal disease, your doctor will discuss the best options to treat it. This depends on several factors, including the type of the disease and your general health.

Your treatment for adrenal disease will be customized to your particular needs. One or more of the following therapies may be recommended to treat the disease or help relieve symptoms.

Surgery to remove one or both adrenal glands.

Systemic therapies, including chemotherapy, molecular targeted therapies and nuclear medicine agents.

Medicines to balance levels of hormones or replace deficient hormones.

Adrenal Disease Screening

Screening exams are important medical tests done when you’re healthy and don’t have symptoms. They help find disease at its earliest stage, when the chances for curing it are best.
If your family members have certain hereditary syndromes, your doctor may suggest gene testing or other screening tests to identify disorders as soon as possible.

Adrenal Disease Risk Factors

Certain inherited disorders can increase your risk of having an adrenal disease. These include:

  • Li-Fraumeni syndrome
  • Multiple Endocrine Neoplasia type 2 MEN2
  • Von Hippel-Lindau Syndrome
  • Neurofibromatosis type 1, also known as von Recklinghausen’s disease
  • Paraganglioma syndrome
  • Beckwith-Wiedemann syndrome

Not everyone with these syndromes develops adrenal disease. However, if you or anyone in your family has one of these syndromes, your doctor may recommend genetic screening.

Adrenal Disease Prevention

There are no known lifestyle changes to lower the risk of developing adrenal disease.

Research shows that many cancers can be prevented if people applied everything known about cancer prevention to their lives. 

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टाटा स्मारक अस्पताल
डॉ ई बोर्जेस रोड, परेल, मुंबई - 400 012 भारत 
फ़ोन: +91-22- 24177000, 24146750 - 55
फैक्स: +91-22-24146937
ईमेल : msoffice@tmc.gov.in (रोगी देखभाल और प्रश्नों के लिए) / hrd@tmc.gov.in(प्रशासनिक के लिए - HRD मायने रखता है)

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