Do pituitary tumors require surgery?

  Usually there are functional pituitary tumors that can be operated without surgery, such as prolactinomas, growth hormone pituitary tumors, ACTH adenomas and so on.  At present, the research is more mature is the prolactin pituitary tumor, as long as oral bromocriptine (1-6 tablets per day), it can control the tumor growth, eliminate the symptoms, women can have children normally, life is not affected, the effect is the most ideal.  1.Does any condition match? It can be considered as long as the following aspects exist?  (1) symptoms: women with menopause lactation, not necessarily all exist, menstruation is not normal, irregular, can be considered; (2) check pituitary hormone level, must be prolactin is tens or even a hundred times greater than the normal value, sometimes greater than a few times with clinical symptoms can also be considered; (3) imaging examination for saddle area occupancy, generally tumor is not large, microadenoma even.  2.How long do you take oral medication?  This is also one of the hot spots that many friends consult, according to the current research, normally speaking should be lifelong medication, we have seen the termination of drugs tumor recurrence again, the symptoms reappear. In fact, when the drug treatment is effective, the dosage can be reduced appropriately for a period of time, generally the daily oral dosage to half a tablet is the lowest dosage, and it is recommended to take it all the time and check the hormone level regularly. This is both safe and effective.  3.Can I stop taking oral medication?  It is recommended to maintain at the lowest dose and not to stop at will.  4.Can I get pregnant and give birth during the medication?  This is one of the questions asked by many women. Generally, the hormonal cycle of oral medication is normal, so of course it is possible to get pregnant. In the first 3 months of pregnancy, it can be suspended for the development of the child, after which it will continue to be taken. After the birth of the child, oral medication is also not recommended during breastfeeding to avoid the drug affecting the development of the child, but it is best to take it after discontinuing breastfeeding. These are applicable to microadenoma cases, and macroadenoma invasive pituitary tumor is recommended to wait for the tumor to shrink or not obvious before treating according to this case.  5.What kind of cases must be operated?  This is another frequently asked question. Generally, if the medication is not well controlled, if there are side effects (vomiting, diarrhea, headache, etc.), if the hormone decrease is not obvious after repeated checks, and if the menstruation does not improve, then surgery is recommended, and usually transsphenoidal surgery is chosen.  Surgery is usually more effective, and sometimes oral medication is required after surgery.