Clinical aspects of molecular biology of pituitary adenomas

Pituitary adenomas are primary, benign CNS tumors. Sporadically, they metastasize or become malignant. However, they can infiltrate adjacent structures even if they are benign and without hormonal activity. Moreover, by compressing adjacent tissues they cause their gradual degradation and, as a result, irreversible CNS damage. Pure endoscopic transnasal transsphenoidal approach enables minimally invasive resection of the aforementioned tumors. In most cases, standard total resection is sufficient but in some cases tumors could be recurrent. There are still unknown risk factors leading to recurrence and subsequent progression of these tumors. This is the reason why pituitary adenomas are a serious clinical and social problem in spite of their benign histology. Continuous development of immunohistochemical and proteomic examinations and application of advanced methods of functional genomics allow for better understanding of biology and pathogenesis of these tumors. In the paper authors discuss molecular etiopathogenesis of pituitary adenomas.