What is the Difference Between Carcinoid Tumor and Carcinoid Syndrome

The key difference between carcinoid tumor and carcinoid syndrome is that carcinoid tumor is a cancer that arises in hormone-production areas of the body, while carcinoid syndrome occurs when a carcinoid tumor secretes certain chemicals into the bloodstream.

Carcinoid tumor and carcinoid syndrome are two related conditions. This is because carcinoid syndrome is caused by chemicals released by carcinoid tumors in the body. This ultimately leads to related symptoms in the carcinoid syndrome.

CONTENTS

1. Overview and Key Difference
2. What is Carcinoid Tumor  
3. What is Carcinoid Syndrome
4. Similarities – Carcinoid Tumor and Carcinoid Syndrome
5. Carcinoid Tumor vs. Carcinoid Syndrome in Tabular Form
6. Summary – Carcinoid Tumor vs. Carcinoid Syndrome

What is a Carcinoid Tumor?

Carcinoid tumor is a rare and slow-growing cancer. It is a type of neuroendocrine tumor that normally begins in parts of the digestive tract, such as the stomach, appendix, small intestine, colon, rectum, or lungs. The signs and symptoms of this condition may include abdominal pain, diarrhoea, nausea, vomiting, rectal bleeding, rectal pain, redness in the face and neck, chest pain, wheezing, shortness of breath, weight gain, and pink or purple marks on the skin. This tumor occurs when a cell develops mutations in its DNA. The risk factors for this condition include older age, sex (women are affected more) and family history.

Carcinoid tumors can be diagnosed through blood tests, urine tests, imaging tests (CT, PET, and X-ray), endoscopy, and biopsy. Furthermore, carcinoid tumor can be treated through surgery, medications to control hormones (octreotide and lanreotide), chemotherapy, targeted drug therapy, and peptide receptor radionuclide therapy (PRRT).

What is Carcinoid Syndrome?

Carcinoid syndrome is a condition caused by a carcinoid tumor that secretes chemicals like serotonin or other chemicals into the bloodstream. Moreover, the signs and symptoms of this condition may include skin flushing, facial skin lesions, diarrhea, difficulty in breathing, and rapid heartbeat. The risk factors for this condition include age (more likely to occur in middle age), race (African-Americans are more likely to be affected), and family history of having multiple endocrine neoplasia type 1 (MEN 1).

Carcinoid syndrome can be diagnosed through 5-HIAA urine tests, blood tests, tumor marker tests, endoscopy, and biopsy. Furthermore, treatment options for carcinoid syndrome may include antidiarrheal medications, changes to diet, somatostatin analogs, surgery, hormone therapy, immunotherapy, radiation therapy, chemotherapy, and targeted drug therapy.

What are the Similarities Between Carcinoid Tumor and Carcinoid Syndrome?

• Carcinoid tumor and carcinoid syndrome are two related conditions.
• Carcinoid syndrome is caused by the chemicals released by carcinoid tumors in the body.
• Both conditions may have similar symptoms, such as diarrhea and breathing difficulties.
• Both conditions can be diagnosed through urine tests, blood tests, endoscopy, and biopsy.
• They can be treated through surgery, chemotherapy, targeted therapy, and radiation therapy.

What is the Difference Between Carcinoid Tumor and Carcinoid Syndrome?

Carcinoid tumor is a cancer arising in hormone-production areas of the body, while carcinoid syndrome occurs when a carcinoid tumor secretes certain chemicals into the bloodstream. Thus, this is the key difference between carcinoid tumor and carcinoid syndrome. Furthermore, risk factors for carcinoid tumors include older age, sex (women are affected more), and family history. On the other hand, the risk factors for carcinoid syndrome include age (more likely to occur in middle age), race (African-Americans are more likely to be affected), and family history of having multiple endocrine neoplasia type 1 (MEN 1).

The infographic below presents the differences between carcinoid tumor and carcinoid syndrome in tabular form for side-by-side comparison.

Summary – Carcinoid Tumor vs. Carcinoid Syndrome

Carcinoid tumor and carcinoid syndrome are two associated conditions. This is because chemicals released by carcinoid tumors cause carcinoid syndrome. Moreover, both conditions may have similar symptoms, such as diarrhea, breathing difficulties, etc. However, these are different conditions with different aetiologies. A carcinoid tumor is a type of neuroendocrine tumor that occurs most commonly in the gastrointestinal tract or the lungs, while carcinoid syndrome is a condition caused by the release of humoral factors such as polypeptides, prostaglandins, and biogenic amines from carcinoid tumors. So, this summarizes the difference between carcinoid tumor and carcinoid syndrome.

Reference:

1. Pinchot, Scott N, et al. “Carcinoid Tumors.” The Oncologist, U.S. National Library of Medicine.
2.“Carcinoid Syndrome.” Mayo Clinic, Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research.

Image Courtesy:

1. “Carcinoid tumor – FNA Case 169” By Dr. Yale Rosen Atlas of Pulmonary Pathology (CC BY-SA 2.0 DEED) via Flickr
2. “Typical carcinoid, insular pattern (4383950383)” By Yale Rosen from USA – Typical carcinoid, insular patternUploaded by CFCF (CC BY-SA 2.0) via Commons Wikimedia