Does anyone have adrenal tumors?

[grendslori]

Not cancerous ones, just tumors. What kind of symptoms are you dealing with?

[Trishciarma]

I've been monitoring my adrenal tumour on my right side for 4 years and always having high cortisol
I'm 36 one child 6 years old and haven't been able to fall pregnant again
I've got anxiety and insomnia and recently went to get my heart checked just in case and cardiologist suggested I see another endocrinologist for second opinion! So I did and even though I don't have cushions he thinks I get it removed!
I'm booked in for 8 weeks
I'm so scared regarding how I'll feel after op and more then likely will need meds till my remaining adrenal wakes up! I'm frightened I leave hospital and my cortisol is now to low because I've only got one adrenal gland
Good luck to you is love to hear if anybody has had similar experiences  

[tacolino]

Hi . I had serious BP Spikes and meds would not lower it. I had CT of Adrenals but nothing showed. As soon as I got Aldactone my BP went down by 100 Systolic. This can be a clear indicator of Adrenal  Adenoma in one or both glands. The gold standard test is Adrenal vein sampling. This is strongly recommended before surgery is done.
This confirms if its in one or both. If its in both its meds for life. (I think some are not great for you trying for a baby, so I can see your difficulty) What meds do you take? Did you have a pet scan? A worldwide expert on this is in the UK> He is Professor Maurice Brown Cambridge University. You should look at some of his papers. Hope this is some help. Keep the faith!!

[rumpled]

That was how I was diagnosed as well. The cortisol going up and down causes a lot of pain. My Cushing's was cyclical so it took a while to get diagnosed and treated since a lot of doctors do not think hormones cycle.

[grendslori]

Thank you for all of your input. I was diagnosed "out of the blue" by the rhuematology department at a University Hospital. I never saw that coming; I didn't go to them because of any pain issues, I was sent because I also have Raynaurds. They did the pressure point test on me and I was still hurting pretty bad after 5 minutes. Since then I have started having a lot of problems with muscle weaknesses and am now seeing a neurologist. On Monday I have an appointment to see a Gastroenterologist because my liver enzymes have risen the last two blood workups I've had done. Next step is a liver biopsy. I found it interesting that you mentioned that the liver could be affected. Again, thank you for your responses.

[rumpled]

Hmmm - I was mis-diagnosed with Fibro - I had Cushing's. My adrenals were enlarged and nodular.
It also messes with your liver, your heart, your bones, your thyroid, your period, your inflammation  - just about everything.

I used to sweat so bad that I had to stop wearing anything on my hair (e.g. mousse) as my scalp would sweat, re-wet my entire head, and I would end up looking like a hedge hog. I wet chairs I sat on and my glasses used to slide right off my face. Mine was pituitary source- it was tiny, but mighty.

[grendslori]

Thank you for the reply, evo123. I can't tell you what my heart rates were; I rarely keep track of them as I know from experience that can make matters worse. I have had a definite increase in premature beats though as I have no trouble feeling those. LOLs! I think I have had a hormone check not too long ago; I have already gone through menopause, so I know that isn't an issue.  

[evo123]

I have a tumour on my left adrenal gland, it is small at 10mm x 7mm (june '09) and I have another MRI on the 17th of this month to see if it has grown.  

I have many symptoms, including tachycardia, bp increase on standing, dizzyness, adrenaline rushes, sweating of hands and feet, near faints, nausea, hypoglycemia, and generally unwell to name just a few!!  

It was first thought I had addisons, then a condition called POTS, when they found the growth they thought it was a pheo but urine was normal, so now they do think it is POTS and I am awaiting further investigation.  I was also tested for cushings as I had a one off high cortisol.  Complicated!!!

I think really it is a basis of tests and ruling things out.  Although even these can sometimes be wrong!!  

Have you had any of your hormones tested?  You say on of your symptoms is sweating, can I ask what your heart rate is like when this happens.

[grendslori]

So far I have only had a CAT Scan and an MRI. On Monday I have an appointment to see a Gastroenterologist because my liver enzymes are elevated. I have a history of SVT and many years ago they considered Pheno, but I didn't have it. I have other health issues going on as well: a non-malignant brain tumor, pre-diabetes, Fibromyalgia which has gotten really bad, I also had a lumpectomy this past year as well. One thing I have noticed is I'm am sweating really bad at this point; the other day I was out working in my kennel in the 30s and I had sweat literally dripping off the end of my nose! I am wondering if this could be a sign of the tumors, even though they are still small tumors? Any advice would be appreciated.  

[rumpled]

It could be a pheo, Cushing's or other things.
Adrenals effect a lot of things in the body from metabolism to androgens to blood pressure.

Ignoring it (by a doc) is generally not a good idea... what testing has been done?