Patricia Inácio, PhD,  science writer—

A first patient has been dosed in a Phase 3 trial testing relacorilant as a possible treatment for Cushing’s syndrome, the investigative treatment’s maker, Corcept Therapeutics, announced a press release. The trial, called GRACE (NCT03697109), is enrolling up to 130 endogenous Cushing’s patients at clinical sites in the U.S., Canada and Europe.

Treatment with metyrapone rapidly reduces cortisol levels in Cushing’s syndrome patients and keeps them low over the long term, a real-life study shows. The study, “Metyrapone treatment in Cushing’s syndrome: a real-life study,” was published in the journal Endocrine. Cushing’s syndrome is a condition where patients have too much cortisol…

Measuring the variation in thyroid stimulating hormone blood levels between midnight and morning may be better for diagnosing Cushing’s syndrome than current approaches, a study suggests.  The study, “TSH ratio as a novel diagnostic method for Cushing’s syndrome,” was published in the Endocrine…

Heart problems in Cushing’s syndrome patients may be partially reversed after tumor removal surgery, new research shows. For most patients in the study, the surgery also improved quality of life, mental and physical health, anxiety, and depression. However, 1 in 3 patients showed worse anxiety and depression scores, researchers…

“Functional” adrenal incidentalomas — abnormal masses found by chance in the adrenal glands that are capable of secreting cortisol and causing Cushing’s syndrome — may occur more frequently than previously estimated, a small Japanese study suggests. These findings suggest that adrenal incidentalomas should be carefully examined, the researchers said.

The resection of microadenomas — small, benign tumors in the pituitary gland underlying Cushing’s disease — could be aided by a fluorescent marker that is naturally produced by the tumor, a new study shows. The findings were presented recently at the 2018 George Washington Research Days in a poster titled,…

Inhibiting steroid production with metyrapone, a common therapy used in Cushing’s disease, may not only normalize cortisol levels but also lead to the spontaneous remission of ectopic tumors producing adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH), according to a case study. Researchers presented the case of a 71-year old women whose ACTH-producing lung tumor regressed spontaneously…

The level of decline in blood cortisol levels in the immediate period after transsphenoidal surgery for Cushing’s disease may help predict which patients will achieve long-term disease remission. The study, “Earlier post-operative hypocortisolemia may predict durable remission from Cushing’s Disease” was published in the European Journal…

Scientists have developed a better method of diagnosing Cushing’s syndrome that measures cortisol levels in a patient’s saliva. The enhanced testing protocol improves upon a method originally developed for urine cortisol, a study shows. The study, “Clinical utility of an ultrasensitive late night salivary cortisol assay by tandem mass…

The prevalence in New Zealand of adrenal incidentalomas, which are masses in the adrenal glands incidentally discovered during an imaging test, is similar to that of international centers, a new study found. This means that current international guidelines for managing adrenal incidentalomas likely should be applied to patients in New Zealand…