What kind of cancer is a parathyroid tumor?
Parathyroid tumors may increase the levels of parathyroid hormones. This leads to more calcium in your blood. This is called hypercalcemia. Most parathyroid tumors are benign (noncancerous) adenomas. Parathyroid cancers are very rare.
Can a benign tumor be removed from a parathyroid gland?
In other words, the typical patient with parathyroid disease has a benign tumor of one of their parathyroid glands. Parathyroid disease is caused by a single bad parathyroid gland (a benign parathyroid tumor) about 75 – 80% of the time. Since there are 4 parathyroid glands, removing one bad one becomes the simple way to cure the problem.
Can a tumor on the parathyroid gland cause a bone fracture?
The takeaway. Parathyroid adenoma is a small benign tumor on one or more of your four parathyroid glands. These tumors can lead to a condition called hyperparathyroidism. This condition can cause bone fractures or kidney stones. In mild cases, your doctor may simply monitor your condition.
When to seek help for a parathyroid tumor?
Though symptoms of parathyroid tumors can mimic other disorders, it’s important to always listen to your body and understand when you should reach out to an experienced parathyroid surgeon for help.
A parathyroid tumor is a growth inside a parathyroid gland. Most parathyroid tumors are not cancer (benign). Parathyroid cancers are very rare. You have 4 parathyroid glands. They are small, pea-sized glands in your neck or upper chest near the thyroid gland.
What to do if you have Parathyroid cancer?
Because people have four parathyroid glands, they can lose one or two without major side effects. When parathyroid cancer is present, our endocrinologists collaborate with UChicago Medicine’s highly experienced endocrine cancer team to develop a comprehensive treatment plan, which might include chemotherapy and radiation in addition to surgery.