Adrenal glad mass

[norwood1]

Hi I was at the hospital yesterday for an mri result in relation to my bowel ( i have colitis) which was all good however the mri showed a 2cm diameter mass arising in relation to the left adrenal gland. Has anyone here had this and what treatment did you have and any advice please. The doctor was very non chalant about it and went out of the room for 10 minutes or more to discuss with another doctor and then said he would be writing to my GP who would refer me on ?? I have been suffering from being exhausted for months and thought it was my thyroid but last results were good and i continue on 100mcg of thyroxine daily.

Many thanks

[humanbean]

The adrenal glands produce quite a few different hormones.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adren...

It is possible to have tumours on the glands which could be producing any of the hormones normally produced by the adrenal gland.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adren...

Many adrenal tumours are benign. They may cause problems - sometimes very severe problems - because they produce excessive hormones but they don't spread to other tissues.

Can I suggest that you do lots of research before allowing anyone to remove the mass you have. The same problems arise with adrenal surgery as happen with thyroid surgery - endocrinologists are mostly diabetes specialists and many of them know little about anything else to do with hormones. Be prepared to travel to find a good endocrinologist who knows about the adrenal glands. Look up individual hospital websites, find out the names of the senior doctors and surgeons in the endocrinology department, and then research those doctors. Look for review sites. Find the nearest teaching hospital to where you live and start researching the staff there. Going to your local general hospital might be the worst thing you could do. Once you have found someone who has good reviews ask your GP to refer you there. And when you get an appointment at your chosen hospital, make sure you are going to be seen by the team that you want, and make sure you tell the hospital you only want to be seen by the person with the good reviews.

Good luck.

[humanbean in reply to humanbean]

Don't just think about the surgery. You have to consider the quality of the aftercare too. Your hormones may be all up the spout for a while after you've had surgery and you need a good doctor to treat you properly medically/hormonally as well as surgically.

[norwood1 in reply to humanbean]

Many thanks for your reply and great advice.