Your Language
Acromegaly is caused when a gland in your brain, called the pituitary gland, produces too much growth hormone over a period of time.1
The over production of growth hormone is usually due to the presence of a non-cancerous (benign) tumour in the pituitary gland called an adenoma.1
In rare cases, acromegaly can be caused by a tumour in other parts of the body, such as the lungs, the pancreas or another part of the brain.1
Most tumours in the pituitary gland develop as a result of uncontrolled growth caused by a change in the DNA of a cell.2 However, it is not known exactly why this happens.2 Acromegaly occasionally runs in families, but generally it is not something that is inherited.1
REFERENCES:
-
NHS England. Acromegaly. Available at:http://www.vivo.colostate.edu/hbooks/pathphys/endocrine/hypopit/gh.html Last accessed September 2020.
-
Moffitt cancer centre. What causes pituitary adenomas? Available at:https://moffitt.org/cancers/pituitary-adenoma/causes/ Last accessed September 2020.
