[Diagnosis of adrenocortical carcinoma]

Adrenocortical carcinoma is a rare disease with a poor prognosis. The prognosis of affected patients is determined by the early detection of the disease at its locoregional stage when surgical resection of the tumour can significantly increase the chances of cure. Determining the dignity of adrenal tumours is often a challenge during preoperative investigation. Diagnosis is aided by conventional radiological and laboratory tests. New biomarkers with considerable diagnostic accuracy have recently been identified and are expected to be incorporated into daily practice in the near future. Among them, the most promising techniques include serum and urinary steroid metabolomics and miRNA analyses. In this review, we describe preoperative clinical and postoperative pathological testing methods that could serve as useful tools for identifying adrenocortical carcinoma. Orv Hetil. 2024; 165(4): 123–131.