An acne breakout could be a sign of a rare form of cancer that is wreaking havoc on your hormones.
Pituitary cancer affects about 100 people a year and occurs when a cancerous tumor grows on the small lump at the base of the brain that is crucial for controlling the production of hormones.
The disease can cause hormone levels to become irregular, resulting in a range of symptoms usually associated with puberty, including the outbreak of unsightly spots.
Now a skin health expert has taken to social media to warn about the disease and the many hormone-related problems that could be possible signs.
In a clip that has been viewed more than 2 million times on TikTok, Dr. Mehss from Turkey: ‘Pituitary tumors can cause various skin symptoms, such as thickened skin, hyperpigmentation, acne, hirsutism (excess hair) and dry skin, due to hormonal imbalances.’
Although these tumors can be cancerous, benign tumors in the pituitary gland can also cause these types of pimples and other health problems.
The vast majority of pituitary tumors are benign; about 10,000 are diagnosed each year.
These growths cannot spread to other parts of the body like cancerous areas.
However, when it comes to cancer, it can be fatal. Data shows that approximately three in five patients die within ten years of their diagnosis.
An acne breakout could be a sign of a rare cancer that is wreaking havoc on your hormones, a doctor has warned
The connection between pimples and the pituitary gland lies in the fact that a pituitary tumor produces an excess of cortisol, a ‘stress hormone’.
Too much cortisol can lead to acne because it causes glands in the skin to produce excess oil, leading to the development of pimples.
Other bizarre problems can also be attributed to a pituitary tumor, depending on the type of hormones the growth produces.
This includes suddenly expressing breast milk without being pregnant or breastfeeding, excessive hair growth around the chin in women, and abnormally large hands and feet due to excess growth hormone.
Not all pituitary tumors produce hormones, but even these can still cause problems.
A growing tumor in that part of the body can put pressure on the nerves connected to the eyes, potentially causing vision problems or headaches.
Some social media users who responded to the clip were dismayed at the wide range of symptoms the tumors could potentially cause.
“Thank you for describing me,” one person wrote.
“I literally have all these symptoms,” said another.
However, in many cases pituitary gland tumors do not cause any problems and are discovered incidentally by doctors carrying out another test, such as a scan.
In fact, studies conducted on dead bodies suggest that between a third and a quarter of people may have small pituitary tumors without ever knowing it.
Charity Cancer Research UK estimates that around 17 percent of brain tumors diagnosed in Britain develop in the pituitary gland.
Treatment for problematic pituitary tumors typically involves surgery to remove as much of the growth as possible, followed by radiation therapy to kill any remaining tumor cells.
Some pituitary tumors can also be treated with medications that help reduce the excess amount of hormones they can produce.
Some patients will need to use artificial hormones to compensate for the lower levels produced by a poorly functioning pituitary gland, as well as constant monitoring to ensure a tumor does not return.
What causes the development of most pituitary tumors is not clear, but there is some evidence that the problem may run in families.