Patients With Pituitary Neuroendocrine Tumours Requiring Neurosurgery –Who Is Referring Them?
Authors' conclusion
Patients with PitNETs encounter a range of clinical services in their journey to pituitary surgery. Raising awareness of these tumours and educating healthcare professionals across all disciplines could reduce diagnostic delays, thereby minimising the adverse sequelae of delayed diagnosis.
Study context
- Population
- Patients undergoing a first surgery for PitNET in Northern Ireland, 01/01/2000–19/07/2019referral source known
- Participants
- 520 patients
- Outcome
- Sources of referral for patients who underwent pituitary resection for pituitary neuroendocrine tumours (PitNETs)
Methodological detailssingle tertiary referral centre
- Single tertiary referral centre
Main finding
As reported in the abstract
Referral sources
- Number of different referral sources
- 29
- General practice
- 23%
- Ophthalmology
- 14%
- Emergency medicine
- 9%
- Optician/optometry
- 9%
- Internists
- 8%
Observational data: associations, not effects.
Further findings
Demographics
- Male
- 57%
- Median age at diagnosis, years (range 18-85)
- 54
Incidentaloma referrals
- Referred after radiological discovery of an incidentaloma
- 29 patients
Pituitary apoplexy at initial presentation
- Referred with pituitary apoplexy
- 27 patients
- Share of apoplexy referrals from emergency medicine
- 70%
Symptoms
- Visual disturbance and headache were the most frequently documented symptoms
Diagnostic delay
- Median diagnostic delay, years (range 0-25 years)
- 2
Original publication
Patients With Pituitary Neuroendocrine Tumours Requiring Neurosurgery –Who Is Referring Them? Clin Endocrinol (Oxf). Published 18 January 2026. doi:10.
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