Nonfunctioning Pituitary Adenoma Recurrence and Its Relationship with Sex, Size, and Hormonal Immunohistochemical Profile

Background Tumor recurrence or incomplete resection in nonfunctioning pituitary adenomas (NFPAs) is relatively common. However, predictive factors of tumor recurrence in NFPAs are not well established. We evaluated possible factors related to tumor recurrence in a large cohort of NFPAs at a single pituitary neurosurgery center. Methods A retrospective analysis was conducted of 410 medical records of patients with NFPAs treated by transsphenoidal surgery between 2000 and 2014. Results Among the participants, 210 were female (51.0%). A total of 14.1% had giant adenomas. Null-cell pituitary adenomas ( n  = 239; 58.9%) were the most frequent, followed by silent gonadotroph adenomas ( n  = 112; 27.3%). Null-cell adenomas were more frequent in women ( P  = 0.008) and silent gonadotroph adenomas were more frequent in men ( P  = 0.004). Recurrence was not related to sex or age. Tumor recurrence occurred more often among silent corticotropic adenomas and giant adenomas (hazard ratio 2.45; P P  = 0.001, respectively). Silent thyrotrophic adenoma presented a comparable frequency of recurrence of silent corticotropic adenomas, despite having borderline significance ( P  = 0.07). Conclusions NFPA tumors have a high heterogeneous hormonal profile and may have prognostic importance. Silent corticotropic adenomas and giant adenomas present a high rate of recurrence.