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Treatments and drugs
By Mayo Clinic staffTreating carcinoid syndrome involves treating your cancer. Surgery to remove your cancer or most of your cancer may be an option. If surgery isn't an option because your cancer is too widespread, your doctor may recommend treatment to shrink your tumors. This may reduce the signs and symptoms of carcinoid syndrome.
Treatments could include:
- Octreotide (Sandostatin). Monthly octreotide injections may slow the rate of growth of your carcinoid tumor and reduce the signs and symptoms of carcinoid syndrome. Octreotide controls flushing and diarrhea in most people with carcinoid syndrome. Side effects of octreotide include abdominal pain and bloating, diarrhea and nausea, though these symptoms may subside with time. Some people can't tolerate the side effects of octreotide and must stop taking the drug.
- Biological therapy. An injectable medication called interferon alfa, which stimulates the body's immune system to work better, is sometimes used to slow the growth of carcinoid tumors and to relieve symptoms. This drug may be prescribed alone or in combination with octreotide. Interferon also causes significant side effects, including fatigue, bone pain, headaches and vomiting.
- Stopping blood supply to the tumor. In a procedure called hepatic artery embolization, a doctor inserts a catheter through a needle near your groin and threads it up to the main artery that carries blood to your liver (hepatic artery). The doctor releases particles to clog the hepatic artery, cutting off the blood supply to any cancer cells that have spread to the liver. The healthy liver cells survive by relying on blood from other blood vessels. Hepatic artery embolization can be risky, especially in people with liver disease, and the procedure is typically only performed in specialized medical centers. Discuss the benefits and risks with your doctor.
- Killing cancer cells with heat. Radiofrequency ablation delivers heat through a needle to the cancer cells in the liver, causing the cells to die. This treatment might be an option if you have a small number of liver metastases that are small in size. Radiofrequency ablation is generally safe, though there is a small risk of blood loss and infection.
- Chemotherapy. Chemotherapy drugs may shrink carcinoid tumors. What side effects you may experience will depend on which chemotherapy drugs you receive. Discuss your particular chemotherapy regimen with your doctor.
Medications to control your specific signs and symptoms also may be available. Your doctor may try various combinations of medications to treat your signs and symptoms based on the specific characteristics of your cancer.
The prognosis for people living with carcinoid cancer varies widely, depending on the extent of tumor spread and whether carcinoid syndrome has developed. As cancer research continues, doctors are finding new ways to treat advanced cancers, which may improve survival.
