Adrenocortical tumors: clinical symptoms and biochemical diagnosis

Patients who are suspected clinically to suffer from hypersecretory disorders of their adrenal(s) should undergo an appropriate endocrinological investigation to confirm or exclude the presence of such disorders prior to any radiological investigation. In those patients in whom an adrenal mass is found 'incidentally' on imaging clinical symptoms of hormonal activity should be carefully followed up. Asymptomatic patients should be screened biochemically for latent hormonal hypersecretion syndromes including pheochromocytoma (urine catecholamine excretion), hypercortisolism (overnight dexamethason suppression test) and aldosteronism (blood pressure and serum potassium). These investigations are mandatory in all patients scheduled for surgery. The decision to refer patients with inactive adrenal tumors to surgery is, in the absence of valid biochemical markers of malignancy, mainly influenced by tumor size but remains arbitrary. Patients who are not at first treated by surgery should be operated if follow-up indicates a progression in tumor size.