Carcinoid: Treatment
Last reviewed: 23.04.2024
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Treatment of carcinoid surgical - resection of the intestine with a radical removal of the tumor and metastases, if any. Carcinoids are thick, more often than the rectum, can also be removed through the endoscope or transanal. Symptomatic therapy consists in the appointment of blockers of a- and beta-adrenergic receptors (anaprilin, phentolamine, etc.); less effective corticosteroids, aminazine and antihistamines. In the treatment of patients with established diagnosis, monoamine oxidase inhibitors such as Ipraside and other antidepressants should not be used before surgery because they relieve the conversion of serotonin to 5-hydroxyindolylacetic acid and therefore increase serotonin levels in the blood, thereby provoking and prolonging serotonin crises.
The prognosis for timely diagnosis and surgical removal of the tumor is relatively favorable, it is better than with other types of malignant tumors.
The tumor is characterized by a slow growth, so that the average life expectancy of patients even without treatment is 4-8 years or more. Death can come from multiple metastases and cachexia, heart failure, intestinal obstruction.
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