What is ectopic ACTH production?
Adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) at some site other than the pituitary gland. Some benign or malignant (cancerous) tumors that arise outside the pituitary can produce ACTH. This condition is known as Ectopic ACTH Syndrome. Lung tumors cause over 50 percent of these cases. Men are affected 3 times more frequently than women. The most common forms of ACTH-producing tumors are oat cell, or small cell lung cancer, which accounts for about 25 percent of all lung cancer cases, and carcinoid tumors. Other less common types of tumors that can produce ACTH are thymomas, pancreatic islet cell tumors, and medullary carcinomas of the thyroid. Read about treatments for Ectopic ACTH Syndrome.