Remission of prolactinoma after pregnancy

Prolactinomas are pituitary tumours occuring in women of child-bearing age. Treatment with dopamine agonists reduces both prolactin level and tumour size and is effective in restoring fertility, thereby allowing pregnancy.  Whilst studies  have focussed on the risks of treatment and tumour growth during pregnancy, little is known about the outcome of women with prolactinoma after pregnancy and lactation.

Domingue et al conducted a retrospective study to study remission after pregnancy and lactation in women with prolactinoma.

The results of their study shows that more than 40% of the women with previous diagnosis of prolactinoma had normal levels of prolactin without medical treatment with or without lactation . They also found that a smaller adenoma size and normalization of pituitary MRI after pregnancy favours remission while breastfeeding does not increase the risk of persisting hyperprolactinaemia in woman with prolactinoma.

Read full article at Domingue et al. (2014) Clinical Endocrinology 80 642-648; DOI: 10.1111/cen.12370