Summary and Conclusions
Knowledge of carcinoid tumors of the gastrointestinal tract has incerased rapidly for two decades but the greatest advance has been made during the past four years. All characteristics of carcinoid tumors have been so variable that their inconsistency has attracted much attention. Recent studies of the chemistry of carcinoid tumors have resulted in the discovery of serotonin, a secretion produced by the tumor, which is believed to have a significant relationship to symptoms and spread of the disease. The proctologist’s responsibility in connection with the diagnosis of carcinoid tumors of the rectum is obvious. Once a diagnosis of carcinoid disease is made, a resection of the lesion is always indicated. It is my belief that resection of the lesion is indicated in cases where carcinoid disease is only suspected. Probably the rate of incidence of this disease is not increasing and the apparent increase is owing to the frequency of its recognition. Furthermore, there is every reason to believe that this apparent increase will become more noticeable as our knowledge of the peculiarities of carcinoids continues to improve.
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Read at the meeting of the American Proctologic Society, Los Angeles, California, June 29 to July 3, 1958.
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Copland, S.M. Carcinoid disease. Dis Colon Rectum 1, 471–476 (1958). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02633417
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02633417