Neuroendocrine Tumors

Overview

Specialists at Mayo Clinic are dedicated to providing the most appropriate treatment for patients with neuroendocrine tumors. Hundreds of patients who have neuroendocrine tumors are treated annually at Mayo Clinic.

At Mayo, specialists in neurology, neurosurgery, hematology and oncology work together to diagnose and treat all types of neuroendocrine tumors. Mayo specialists also conduct research on ways to advance the quality of care they can provide. Mayo Clinic Cancer Center is a National Cancer Institute-designated comprehensive cancer center, one of about 40 in the United States.

Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, is ranked No. 1 in Neurology and Neurosurgery in the U.S. News & World Report Best Hospitals rankings.

Types of Neuroendocrine Tumors

Neuroendocrine tumors are abnormal growths of tissue whose cells secrete higher-than-normal amounts of hormones into the bloodstream. They cause the nervous system to function abnormally. Neuroendocrine tumors are either carcinoid (small and slow-growing) or carcinomas (new growth that tends to spread to surrounding tissues). Carcinoid tumors may be benign (noncancerous) or malignant (cancerous). Carcinomas are always malignant.

Types of neuroendocrine tumors include:
Carcinoid tumors
Duodenal endocrine tumors
Islet cell tumors
Medullary thyroid carcinomas
Neuroendocrine carcinomas of the skin (Merkel cell cancer)
Pheochromocytomas

Learn more about neuroendocrine tumors at www.MayoClinic.com.