Pheochromocytoma: challenges in diagnosis and nursing care

Pheochromocytomas are catecholamine-secreting tumors arising from chromaffin cells of the sympathoadrenal system, which includes the adrenal medulla and sympathetic ganglionic tissue. The effects of catecholamine excess cause potentially fatal symptomologies and end-organ damage if not diagnosed and treated. If diagnosed and removed surgically, most of these patients can be cures. Pheochromocytomas are rare and affect from two to eight per million people. There are 800 deaths in the United States annually as a result of complications. Of patients who have pheochromocytomas diagnosed at autopsy, 75% died suddenly from myocardial infarction or cerebral vascular catastrophe. Challenges in diagnosis, tumor location, and treatment are considerable.