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Growth Hormone Treatment, Acromegaly, and Relationship to Cancer and Leukemia

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Growth Hormone II

Part of the book series: Serono Symposia USA Norwell, Massachusetts ((SERONOSYMP))

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Abstract

Use of growth hormone (GH) as a therapeutic agent has expanded over the past several years to include children whose short stature is due to conditions other than GH deficiency. Larger numbers of children are being treated and are receiving doses of GH that are generally higher than those used when only pituitary GH was available. One of the potential side effects of GH about which there is concern is that of a tumorigenic action of this peptide. This concern came into focus in 1988 when several children developed leukemia after receiving GH therapeutically (1). In a previous report we discussed some of the factors that should be considered in assessing the influence of GH on tumor formation and tumor growth (2). We observed that several studies indicate that the production rates for GH in normal adults range between 5.5 and 17.4 µg/kg/day and that acromegalic patients produce 50– >1000 µg/kg/day. Most children treated with GH received 25–50 µg GH/kg/day. Therefore, the amounts of GH given therapeutically are slightly above daily GH production by normal subjects, but lower than the amount produced by most patients with acromegaly.

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Authors
  1. Louis E. Underwood
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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Pediatric Endocrinology, All Children’s Hospital, St. Petersburg, FL, 33701, USA

    Barry B. Bercu M.D.  & Richard F. Walker Ph.D.  & 

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© 1994 Springer-Verlag New York, Inc.

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Underwood, L.E. (1994). Growth Hormone Treatment, Acromegaly, and Relationship to Cancer and Leukemia. In: Bercu, B.B., Walker, R.F. (eds) Growth Hormone II. Serono Symposia USA Norwell, Massachusetts. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4613-8372-7_19

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4613-8372-7_19

  • Publisher Name: Springer, New York, NY

  • Print ISBN: 978-1-4613-8374-1

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-4613-8372-7

  • eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive

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