What Are Metastatic Carcinoid Tumors?
Carcinoid tumors are cancers that originate in the epithelial cells, such as the skin layer or the outer layer of organs. Metastatic refers to cancer that has spread from the primary tumor, or the place where the cancer began. Up to 75 percent of all carcinoid tumors metastasize to the liver.TypesThe most commonly seen carcinomas include adenoid cystic carcinoma, basal cell carcinoma,lung carcinoma, cervical carcinoma, breast carcinoma, liver carcinoma, merkel cell carcinoma, neuroendocrine carcinoma, thyroid carcinoma, kidney cell carcinoma, small cell carcinoma, squamous cell carcinoma and transitional cell carcinoma.GrowthCarcinoid tumors are characterized as slow growing, and even when metastatic, the spread has typically occurred slowly and the patient will survive several years on average.SymptomsMetastatic carcinoid tumors generally do not present symptoms, unless the secretions from the disease get circulated throughout body systems. Then symptoms like diarrhea or wheezing may
