Neuroendocrine tumors hide deep! If unexplained diarrhea persists for a long time, you need to be vigilant

"When patients with functional diarrhea of ​​unknown etiology persist for a long time, they should be alert to the possibility of developing gastrointestinal neuroendocrine tumors." A professor said in an interview. The so-called functional diarrhea refers to a syndrome characterized by persistent or repeated loose or mushy stools without abdominal pain or discomfort.

It is not uncommon for patients with diarrhea and abdominal pain, some due to irritable bowel syndrome. However, if such symptoms have not improved, or even worsened, it may be necessary to consider whether it is some tumor.

Neuroendocrine tumors are one type. According to epidemiology, the incidence of neuroendocrine tumors is actually not high, and it is not particularly common, so patients may have to go through multiple hospital examinations to be finally diagnosed.

Neuroendocrine tumors, accounting for less than 1% of all malignant tumors, are very rare tumors that mostly occur in the stomach, intestine, and pancreas. Carcinoid tumors are the most common of these tumors, with an incidence of about 2.5/100,000, accounting for 50% of all gastroenteropancreatic neuroendocrine tumors. Carcinoid tumors can be divided into foregut (lung, bronchi, and the upper gastrointestinal tract up to the jejunum), midgut (ileum and appendix), and hindgut (rectum). Such tumors can occur throughout the neuroendocrine system, but the most common site of involvement is the pancreas.

Why do such tumors occur throughout the neuroendocrine system? That's because neuroendocrine cells are actually widely distributed in the endocrine organs or tissues of the human body. But it doesn't stop there. In normal humans, such cells are also present in the bronchi and lungs, the gastrointestinal tract, the exocrine (ductal) system of the pancreas, the bile ducts, and the liver.

Neuroendocrine tumors often have few typical symptoms, and even if they do, there are very few symptoms, such as diarrhea, abdominal pain, and peptic ulcers. Patients may be diagnosed as common digestive diseases when they see a doctor. Because these tumors can be distributed in many parts of the body, there are many tumors. One of these is called carcinoid syndrome, in which patients experience sudden or persistent flushing of the skin on the head, face, and trunk.

For patients with unknown symptoms and long-term cure, imaging studies, such as PET examination, can actually be done, which is very helpful for early tumor screening.

It is understood that for functional neuroendocrine tumors, if they can be detected and operated at an early stage, the five-year survival rate can reach more than 70%-80%; Most of the lesions have already metastasized, so the effect is not good.

At present, the etiology of the disease is still unknown, and the treatment of neuroendocrine tumors generally includes surgery, biological therapy and chemotherapy according to the tumor site, stage and pathological grade.

Some experts said that at this stage, different treatment methods are adopted according to the incidence site, stage and pathological grade of neuroendocrine tumors, and surgical resection is the first choice for patients with surgical indications. If the patient's physical condition is not suitable for surgery, drug therapy can be selected, including systemic chemotherapy, somatostatin analogs, and molecularly targeted drugs, and local therapy can also be selected.