Margarida Maia, PhD,  science writer—

Accurately locating tumors in the brain’s pituitary gland by inferior petrosal sinus sampling or IPSS — an invasive test that’s been considered the gold standard for diagnosing Cushing’s disease — may not necessarily lead to better outcomes after surgery, according to a new meta-analysis. While IPSS correctly determined…

For a woman in her 60s in China, Cushing’s syndrome led to a myocardial infarction or heart attack, and to heart failure, according to a report on the rare case. The patient’s Cushing’s was secondary to an adrenocortical adenoma — a benign, or non-cancerous, tumor that formed in the…

For a man in Denmark, Cushing’s syndrome developed as a result of a medullary thyroid carcinoma — a tumor that formed in the thyroid gland in the neck and released corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH), a hormone that triggers cortisol production. During the workup, however, results of inferior petrosal sinus sampling,…

For a short and thin teenager in Poland, his case of Cushing’s disease was first seen as osteoporosis, a condition that causes bones to become weak and prone to fracture. The boy, 15 at the time of diagnosis, did not show other typical …

A form of precise radiation therapy, called intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT), may be safe and effective for Cushing’s disease when a tumor in the brain’s pituitary gland has not been completely removed or has returned after surgery, a study suggests. The study, “Intensity-modulated radiotherapy for cushing’s disease:…

People with Cushing’s syndrome, which is caused by excessive levels of the hormone cortisol in the body, may experience changes in brain activity during sleep, especially in the first half of their sleep cycle, a study has found. Adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH), which drives the adrenal glands sitting atop the kidneys…

People with Cushing’s disease who achieve remission — no matter how long that takes — are more likely to live a longer life than are patients who have active disease, a 20-year study found. Achieving remission, which is when symptoms ease or disappear, was linked to fewer deaths, also…

Cushing’s disease caused a bowel perforation — a rare complication in which a hole in the intestine allows its contents to leak — requiring a young man in Japan to undergo emergency surgery. His case was described in the report “Bowel perforation associated with Cushing’s disease: a case…

A young man developed an asymptomatic form of Cushing’s syndrome — called subclinical Cushing’s syndrome — as a result of a pheochromocytoma, a tumor that can form in the adrenal glands and is usually benign, according to a report from Nepal. “Diagnosing these conditions can be challenging as they…

For a young man in Brazil, Cushing’s syndrome caused by nodules in both adrenal glands was found to be the reason for his severe osteoporosis — a condition that causes bones to weaken and become prone to fracture — according to a case report. While noting that “the diagnosis of…