[Update on mechanisms of pituitary tumorigenesis.]

Pituitary adenomas are intracranial neoplasms that originate from the adeno-pituitary cells, are mostly benign and slow growing. However, a small percentage can be aggressive and spread locally and / or remotely as malignancies. In recent years, progress has been made in understanding the biology of pituitary tumors, identifying mutations in the germline, somatic lines, and epigenetic mechanisms. Objective: review the updated bibliography on the mechanisms of pituitary tumorigenesis. Data source: bibliographic search was performed using the MEDLINE (PubMed), LILACS and Google Scholar databases since 2010 to April 2020. Conclusion: Knowledge and information on pituitary tumorogenesis mechanisms increased in recent decades, and new neoplastic pathways are recognized. However, there are currently few therapeutic approaches to act specifically on the underlying tumor genesis pathway identified in each case.