Bay Biosciences provides high quality, clinical grade, FFPE tissue blocks with matched sera (serum), plasma and peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) biofluid samples from patients diagnosed with adrenal gland cancer.

Moreover, the serum, plasma and PBMC biofluid specimens are processed from patient’s peripheral whole-blood using customized collection and processing protocols.

Furthermore, the FFPE samples and bio-fluids are collected from unique patients diagnosed with adrenal gland cancer and are provided to a valued pharmaceutical customer for research, diagnostics, discovery and drug development.

Detailed clinical data, adrenal gland cancer patients history, symptoms, complete blood count (CBC), serology, chemotherapy information, fresh frozen tumor tissue, elevated biomarker levels, genetic and metabolic information, histopathological findings, annotations associated with adrenal gland cancer specimens is provided to a valued customer for research, development and drug discovery.

Adrenal Gland Tumors Overview

A tumor begins when healthy cells change and grow out of control, forming a mass. Additionally, a tumor can be cancerous or benign. Specifically, a cancerous tumor is malignant, meaning it can grow and spread to other parts of the body. In contrast, a benign tumor means the tumor can grow but will not spread.

Furthermore, an adrenal gland tumor can sometimes produce too much of a hormone. When it does, the tumor is called a “functioning tumor.” On the other hand, an adrenal gland tumor that does not produce hormones is called a “nonfunctioning tumor.” The symptoms and treatment of an adrenal gland tumor depend on several factors:

  • Firstly, whether the tumor is functioning or nonfunctioning
  • Secondly, which hormones is produced in excess
  • Lastly, whether the tumor started in the adrenal gland or spread from another organ  

Moreover, functional adrenal gland tumors may produce any hormone made in the adrenal gland. In rare cases, they may produce more than one hormone.

Additionally, a primary adrenal gland tumor starts in an adrenal gland. Conversely, an adrenal gland tumor may also result from a cancer that began in another organ, such as the lungs, and then spread to the adrenal gland through a process called metastasis.

Types

In summary, primary adrenal gland tumors include the following:

  • First, Adenoma: This is the most common type of adrenal gland tumor. Specifically, it is a noncancerous, nonfunctioning tumor of the adrenal cortex. Furthermore, an adenoma usually does not cause symptoms and, if it is small, often does not need treatment. In addition, adenoma is also called an adrenocortical adenoma.
  • Next, Adrenocortical carcinoma: Adrenocortical carcinoma is rare. However, it is the most common type of cancerous adrenal gland tumor. Additionally, it is also known as adrenal cortical carcinoma. Approximately 4 to 12 out of one million people develop this type of cancer, which begins in the adrenal cortex. Notably, adrenocortical carcinoma can be a functioning or nonfunctioning tumor. If the tumor is functioning, it may produce more than 1 hormone.
  • Moreover, Neuroblastoma: This is a type of childhood cancer that can begin in the adrenal medulla.
  • Finally, Pheochromocytoma: This type of neuroendocrine tumor most often begins in the adrenal medulla.”

Adrenal Gland Cancer Signs and Symptoms

Following are the common signs and symptoms that adrenal gland cancer patients may experience. However, sometimes patients with an adrenal gland tumor do not have any of these changes. Moreover, the cause of a symptom may be another medical condition that is not a tumor.

  • For instance, high blood pressure
  • Additionally, low potassium level
  • Furthermore, heart palpitations
  • In addition, nervousness
  • Also, feelings of anxiety or panic attacks
  • Moreover, headaches
  • Likewise, excessive perspiration
  • Furthermore, diabetes
  • Additionally, abdominal pain
  • Furthermore, unexplained weight gain or weight loss
  • Moreover, fatigue
  • In addition, abdominal stretch marks
  • Also, excessive hair growth
  • Furthermore, changes in genitalia
  • Moreover, unusual acne
  • Additionally, change in libido (sex drive)

Furthermore, in addition to these symptoms, pheochromocytoma may cause dangerous surges of the hormones that regulate blood pressure and the body’s response to stress. Consequently, a hormonal surge can cause blood pressure to rise very quickly, increasing the risk of a heart attack, stroke, hemorrhage, or sudden death.

Causes of Adrenal Gland Cancer

Exact causes of most cancerous adrenal gland tumors are unknown. However, patients with certain hereditary conditions, on the other hand, have a higher risk of developing an adrenal gland tumor. 

Following are the hereditary conditions that, in particular, raise the risk of developing adrenal gland tumors:

  • Multiple endocrine neoplasia type 2 (MEN2)
  • Li-Fraumeni syndrome
  • Von Hippel-Lindau syndrome
  • Neurofibromatosis type 1
  • Carney complex

Moreover, researchers continue to look into what factors are causing adrenal gland tumors and what people can do to lower their personal risk. Although there is no proven way to completely prevent developing adrenal gland cancers, there may, in fact, be steps you can take to lower your risk.

Diagnosis of Adrenal Gland Cancer

To diagnose an adrenal gland cancer, blood and urine tests are performed to look for the presence of certain substances to help determine whether the tumor is functional or nonfunctional. A computed tomography (CT or CAT) scan or a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scan may be useful in making a diagnosis and evaluating whether an adrenal gland tumor is cancerous. Imaging tests show pictures of the inside of the body. Doctors may also do tests to learn which treatments could work best.

This list describes options for diagnosing adrenal gland tumor, and not all tests listed will be used for every person. Your doctor may consider these factors when choosing a diagnostic test:

  • First, the type of tumor suspected
  • Next, your signs and symptoms
  • In addition, your age and medical condition
  • Lastly, the results of earlier medical tests

Diagnostic Tests

In addition to a thorough physical examination, the following tests may be used to diagnose an adrenal gland tumor:

  • Blood and urine tests: Blood and urine tests help measure the amount of adrenal hormones, which can detect a functional tumor. 
  • Biopsy: A biopsy is the removal of a small amount of tissue for examination under a microscope.
  • CT or CAT scan. A CT scan creates a 3-dimensional picture of the inside of the body using x-rays taken from different angles. A computer then combines these images into a detailed, cross-sectional view that shows any abnormalities or tumors.
  • MRI: An MRI uses magnetic fields, not x-rays, to produce detailed images of the body. MRI can also be used to measure the tumos size.
  • Metaiodobenzylguanidine (MIBG) scan: MIBG is a chemical similar to adrenaline that will collect in a neuroendocrine tumor. 
  • Adrenal Vein Sampling (AVS): In rare cases, a patient may have symptoms of a hormone -producing tumor, but CT or MRI scans may not identify a tumor or the patient may have small masses on both adrenal glands. 

After diagnostic tests are done, your doctor will review all of the results with you. If the diagnosis is a tumor, these results also help the doctor describe it. This is called staging.

Treatment of Adrenal Gland Cancer

For an adrenal gland tumor, different types of doctors often work together to create a patient’s overall treatment plan that combines different types of treatments. This is called a multidisciplinary team. Cancer care teams also include a variety of other health care professionals, including physician assistants, oncology nurses, social workers, pharmacists, counselors, dietitians, and others.

Up to twenty five percent of adrenal tumors may be linked to a genetic syndrome. 

Descriptions of the most common treatment options for an adrenal gland tumor are listed below. Treatment options and recommendations depend on several factors, including the type and stage of the tumor, possible side effects, and the patient’s preferences and overall health. Your care plan may also include treatment for symptoms and side effects, an important part of cancer care.

Biospecimens

biospecimens

Bay Biosciences is a global leader in providing researchers with high quality, clinical grade, fully characterized human tissue samples, bio-specimens, and human bio-fluid collections.

Moreover, human biospecimens are available including tumor tissue, serum, plasma and PBMC samples from most other therapeutic areas.

Furthermore, Bay Biosciences maintains and manages its own biorepository, the human tissue bank (biobank) consisting of thousands of diseased samples (specimens) and likewise normal healthy donors for controls. Additionally, available in all formats and types.

In fact, our biobank procures and stores fully consented, de-identified and institutional review boards (IRB) approved human tissue samples, human biofluids such as serum samples, plasma samples from various diseases and matched controls.

Also, all our human tissue collections, human biospecimens and human biofluids are provided with detailed, samples associated patient’s clinical data.

In fact, this critical patient’s clinical data includes information relating to their past and current disease, treatment history, lifestyle choices, biomarkers, and genetic information.

Additionally, researchers find the patient’s data associated with the human biospecimens extremely valuable and use it to help identify new effective treatments (drug discovery & development) in oncology, as well as in other therapeutic areas and diseases.

Bay Biosciences banks wide variety of human tissue samples and human biological samples, including fresh frozen human biospecimens cryogenically preserved at – 80°C.

For example fresh frozen tissue samples, tumor tissue samples, formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded (FFPE), tissue slides, with matching human bio-fluids, whole blood and blood-derived products such as human serum, human plasma and human PBMCs.

Bay Biosciences is a global leader in collecting and providing human tissue samples according to the specified requirements and customized, tailor-made collection protocols.

Please contact us anytime to discuss your special research projects and customized human tissue sample requirements.

Types of Biospecimens

Bay Biosciences provides human tissue samples (human specimens) and human biofluids from diseased and normal healthy donors which includes:

Moreover, we can also procure most human biospecimens and human biofluids, special collections and requests for human samples that are difficult to find. All our human tissue samples and human biofluids are procured through IRB-approved clinical protocols and procedures.

In addition to the standard processing protocols, Bay Biosciences can also provide human biofluids such as  human plasma, human serum, and human PBMCs bio-fluid samples using custom processing protocols; you buy donor-specific collections in higher volumes and specified sample aliquots from us.

Bay Biosciences also provides human biospecimens from normal healthy donors; volunteers, for controls and clinical research, Contact us Now.