Adrenocortical Carcinoma : There is never an end

What is adrenocortical carcinoma?

Adrenocortical carcinoma also called as adrenocortical cancer or cancer of the adrenal cortex, is a very rare form of cancer that originates in the outer layer of tissue of the adrenal gland. Adrenal gland is a small organ situated on the top of each kidney and is responsible for producing steroid hormones, adrenaline, and noradrenaline to control heart rate, blood pressure, and other body functions like balancing water and salt in body, controlling the body's use of protein, fat, and carbohydrates, etc.

What are the different types of adrenocortical carcinoma?

Adrenocortical cancer is usually classified as functioning or non-functioning, depending on the elaboration of adrenocortical hormones (glucocorticoids, mineralocorticoids, androgens, estrogens, rarely a host of possible peptides). 

• Functioning: In this form of cancer, hormones produced are more than the normal.

• Non-functioning: In this form of cancer, hormones are not produced at all.

Another classification of adrenocortical cancers divides them into the following variants:

• Sporadic, and

• Syndromic: These variants occur with multiple cancer predisposition syndromes, like Gardner syndrome, Beckwith-Wiedemann syndrome, multiple endocrine neoplasia type 1, the SBLA syndrome, and Li-Fraumeni syndrome.

Other classifications are based on the cellular origin of the neoplasm.

What are the causes?

So far, no possible causes of cancer has been discovered although there is a small minority of patients with a hereditary component that can be related to genetic syndromes, such as those with p53 gene abnormalities.

Who is at risk?

Although there is no fixed scale, there are few studies that suggest that following factors may put you at more risk of getting this disease:

• If you are a female
• If you are are a child under age 5
• If you are between the age of 40-50
• In case, you have a hereditary disease that can affect your adrenal glands
• Have another form of cancer

What are the symptoms?

The exact symptoms vary depending on whether the cancer is functioning or non-functioning. The symptoms of functioning tumor depend on what hormones it is producing. For instance, if it is producing Testosterone and other androgen, you will observe increased facial and body hair and deepened voice in females; and if it is producing estrogen, you will see early signs of puberty in children. Non functioning tumors may not produce any hormonal changes or cause specific symptoms.

What are the treatments?

As with other cancers, the exact treatment procedure depends on stage of your cancer and your overall health. The usual treatments like immunotherapy for cancer, chemotherapy for cancer, surgery, radiation and biologic therapy.