Effective management of recurrent Doege–Potter syndrome with somatostatin‐analogues: A case report

Abstract

BackgroundDoege–Potter syndrome is defined as paraneoplastic hypoinsulinemic hypoglycemia associated with a benign or malignant solitary fibrous tumor frequently located in pleural, but also extrapleural sites. Hypoglycemia can be attributed to paraneoplastic secretion of “Big‐IGF‐II,” a precursor of Insulin‐like growth factor‐II. This prohormone aberrantly binds to and activates insulin receptors, with consecutive initiation of common insulin actions such as inhibition of gluconeogenesis, activation of glycolysis and stimulation of cellular glucose uptake culminating in recurrent tumor‐induced hypoglycemic episodes. Complete tumor resection or debulking surgery is considered the most promising treatment for DPS.CaseHere, we report a rare case of a recurrent Doege‐Poter Syndrome with atypical gelatinous tumor lesions of the lung, pleura and pericardial fat tissue in an 87‐year‐old woman. Although previously described as ineffective, we propose that adjuvant treatment with Octreotide in conjunction with intravenous glucose helped to maintain tolerable blood glucose levels before tumor resection. The somatostatin‐analogue Lanreotide was successfully used after tumor debulking surgery (R2‐resection) to maintain adequate blood glucose control.ConclusionWe conclude that somatostatin‐analogues bear the potential of being effective in conjunction with limited surgical approaches for the treatment of hypoglycemia in recurrent or non‐totally resectable SFT entities underlying DPS.