Hypoglycemia caused by abdominal leiomyosarcoma

Spindle cell sarcoma of the pulmonary trunk: A case report with histochemistry and electron microscopy

“…Millard et al (1976 have described a spindle cell sarcoma with some granule containing cells where the patient developed episodes of hypoglycaemia. There have been previous reports of hypoglycaemia associated with leiomyosarcomata (Miller, Stewart and Rosner, 1970). In our case, any mild endocrine symptom may have been ascribed to reduced cardiac output.…”

Ectopic Insulin and Occam's Razor:* Reappraisal of the Riddle of Tumour Hypoglycaemia

“…Hyperplasia of the pancreas is not normally found in patients with extrapancreatic hypoglycaemia, despite the fact that sarcomas not accompanied by hypoglycaemia are associated with increased incidence of islet-cell hyperplasia (Hart & Hinerman, 1965). On the contrary, the usual finding is functional atrophy of pancreas (Bommer et al, 1976;Marks et al, 1974;Meinders et al, 1974;Miller et al, 1970;Talstad et al, 1974), which is not compatible with the hypothesis, still occasionally held, of the release of a betacytotrophic substance by the hypoglycaemic tumocr. In fact, at least three reports showed that subtotal pancreatectomy performed in the expectation that the pancreas was the cause of hypoglycaemia, had no effect on hypoglycaemia (Miller et al, 1959;Silverstein et al, 1960;Paulson et al, 1961).…”