Diagnosis and treatment of pituitary tumors

The management of patients with actual or suspected pituitary tumors has frequently been frustating to clinicians. The extent of the work up varies from institution to institution. The criteria for initiation of therapy may be strictly ophthalmologic or radiographic. Furthermore, many modalities for therapy have been used. None of these has seemed completely and uniformly successful, and the choice of a treatment modality frequently appears to be governed by local expertise alone. There have been no large series comparing the newer and X ray treatment techniques. This volume comprises the proceedings of a symposium which took place in Bethesda, Maryland, U.S.A., in January 1973. The symposium undertook the task of summarizing the present status of the art and science of diagnosing and treating pituitary tumors. Critical evaluation was made of the results obtained among patients treated by experts using each of the several methods, and these results were compared. Areas that will require further investigation were defined by the symposium participants.