REVIEW article
Front. Endocrinol.
Sec. Pituitary Endocrinology
Volume 16 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fendo.2025.1597813
This article is part of the Research TopicAdvances in Understanding and Managing Skull Base PathologiesView all articles
Article Title: Bilateral Atypical Ovarian Masses: Don't Overlook a Functional Gonadotropic Pituitary Adenoma
Provisionally accepted- 1Centre Hospitalier Universitaire de Reims, Reims, France
- 2Hôpital Foch, Suresnes, France
Select one of your emails
You have multiple emails registered with Frontiers:
Notify me on publication
Please enter your email address:
If you already have an account, please login
You don't have a Frontiers account ? You can register here
Functional gonadotroph adenoma (FGA) is a rare condition associated with secretion of biologically active gonadotropins which affect reproductive organs. In women of reproductive age, it has been reported as a cause of spontaneous ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome (OHSS) occurring outside the context of assisted reproductive technology (ART). In rare instances, FGA may present as suspicious ovarian masses, leading to an overlooked pituitary disorder. We report the case of a 34-year-old woman initially suspected of having a bilateral ovarian tumor with a borderline component due to thick-walled cystic masses. She underwent pelvic surgery, resulting in an oophorectomy. However, a few weeks postoperatively, the sudden onset of galactorrhea prompted further investigation, revealing hyperprolactinemia, FSH hypersecretion, and low LH levels. Ultimately, the diagnosis of FGA was established A literature review was conducted to analyze similar cases where patients underwent ovarian surgery without prior hormonal assessment or suspicion of pituitary pathology, only to be diagnosed with FGA later. Thirteen additional cases were identified, including ovarian cysts and two cases of suspicious ovarian masses, with diagnostic delays ranging from 1.5 to 10 years. This case highlights the importance of considering FGA in the differential diagnosis of bilateral ovarian masses to avoid unnecessary surgical procedures.
Keywords: Functional gonadotroph adenoma, pituitary adenoma, ovarian mass/cyst, Ovarian Hyperstimulation Syndrome, follicle-stimulating hormone Figure 4: Diagnostic Algorithm for Ovarian Masses and Cysts: Role of Hormonal and Imaging Evaluation Estelle Hagege: conception, Data Collection, writing of the case report, corresponding author data collection. Malorie Mostaert : data collection. Fabien Litre: pituitary surgeon. Olivier Graesslin: gynecological surgeon
Received: 21 Mar 2025; Accepted: 30 May 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Hagege, Vitellius, Fevre, Mostaert, Litre, Graesslin, Pirtea and Delemer. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Estelle Hagege, Centre Hospitalier Universitaire de Reims, Reims, France
Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.