Page 104 - GTM-4-2

Global Translational Medicine

BRIEF REPORT
A comparison of pathology examination and

immunohistochemistry in studying pituitary
adenomas

Ach Taieb 1,2,3 * , El Arem Marwa , Abdessaied Nihed , and Ach Koussay 1,2
1,4
1,2
1 Department of Endocrinology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Sousse, Sousse, Tunisia
2 Department of Diabetology, University Hospital of Farhat Hached, Sousse, Tunisia
3 Laboratory of Exercise Physiology and Pathophysiology; L.R.19ES09, Faculty of Medicine,
University of Sousse, Sousse, Tunisia
4 Department of Pathology, University Hospital of Farhat Hached, Sousse, Tunisia

Abstract

The integration of clinical, biochemical, radiological, and pathological data is crucial
for diagnosing and managing pituitary adenomas (PAs). The objective of the study is to
compare the clinical and biochemical classifications of PAs with their histopathological
findings to improve diagnosis and treatment. This study characterized the clinical,
hormonal, and pathological profiles of 40 patients with histologically confirmed
PAs. Histopathological analysis identified eosinophilic adenomas in 75% of cases,
amphophilic adenomas in 15%, and basophilic adenomas in 10%. Hormonal profiling
*Corresponding author: revealed 22.5% prolactinomas, 15% somatotroph adenomas, 0.5% Cushing disease,
Ach Taieb and 57.5% non-functioning adenomas. Morphologically, tumors exhibited solid
(ach.taieb@gmail.com) (55%), trabecular (30%), and papillary (15%) growth patterns. Immunohistochemical
Citation: Taieb A, Marwa EA, (IHC) analysis revealed monohormonal secretion in 31.5%, mixed growth hormone/
Nihed A, Koussay A. A comparison prolactin secretion in 39.4%, and plurihormonal secretion in 28.9% of cases. In
of pathology examination and
immunohistochemistry in studying conclusion, this study highlights prolactinomas as the most prevalent subtype,
pituitary adenomas. Global Transl underscoring the critical role of integrating histopathological and IHC findings for
Med. 2025;4(2):96-102. accurate diagnosis and classification of adenomas.
doi: 10.36922/gtm.8474
Received: January 9, 2025
Keywords: Adenomas; Pathology; Immunohistochemistry; Hormones; Pituitary
Revised: February 9, 2025
Accepted: February 24, 2025
Published online: March 24, 2025 1. Introduction
Copyright: © 2025 Author(s).
This is an Open-Access article Pituitary adenomas (PAs) are the most common pituitary neoplasms, accounting
1
distributed under the terms of the for approximately 10 – 15% of all intracranial tumors. According to the 2017
Creative Commons Attribution World Health Organization (WHO) classification, pituitary tumors are defined as
License, permitting distribution,
and reproduction in any medium, neoplasms originating within the sella turcica, arising from adenohypophysial cells,
provided the original work is and presenting with varying clinical manifestations based on their hormonal activity
properly cited. and size. Clinically significant pituitary tumors remain relatively rare, with an
2
Publisher’s Note: AccScience estimated prevalence of 200/1,000,000 and an annual incidence of approximately two
Publishing remains neutral with per 100,000. However, many adenomas are asymptomatic and are often discovered
3
regard to jurisdictional claims in
published maps and institutional incidentally during neuroimaging for unrelated reasons, a phenomenon referred to as
affiliations. pituitary incidentalomas.

Volume 4 Issue 2 (2025) 96 doi: 10.36922/gtm.8474