Absence of chromophobe adenomas from a large series of pituitary tumors.

Abstract

Of 145 pituitary adenomas found in about 1600 consecutive autopsies 59% were acidophilic 18.4% derived from beta 1 cells 15.8% were mixed 5.5% were too poorly preserved for identification and none were unequivocally chromophobic. Only 3% of acidophilic adenomas produced typical acromegaly and 7% of all beta 1 cell tumors produced Cushings disease. The apparent lack of chromophobe adenomas in our material is attributed to the use of fixing and staining techniques which permit the recognition of granules by light microscopy even in poorly granulated cells. Since electron micrographs have revealed true chromophobes to be uncommon or nonexistent in human hypophyses chromophobic tumors would be expected to be rare at best. (authors)