Neuroendocrine Neoplasms (NENs) are a heterogeneous group of cancers, arising from cells of endocrine glands and neuroendocrine cells in the diffuse neuroendocrine system.
While considered rare diseases, their incidence and prevalence have increased dramatically over the past decades, and continue to rise worldwide.
The extremely different sites of origin, the enormous heterogeneity in term of biological aggressiveness, the capability to secrete hormonally active substances, together with the possible presentation in combination with other NENs (i.e. in the Multiple Endocrine Neoplasia Type 1 and 2), poses unique challenges for their clinical management. Consequently, treatment of patients with NENs requires an accurate knowledge of the advances in this field, in the context of a multidisciplinary approach.
This Special Issue aims to highlight the state of the art and the future perspectives on biology, diagnosis, and therapy of NENs.
Some of the potential topics in this theme include:
- Advances in biology (metabolic pathways, genetic basis, epigenetic)
- New diagnostic approaches (markers in biological fluids and in immunohistochemistry, novelty in imaging)
- Emerging therapy strategies (radionuclides, surgical and medical therapies, including studies on cellular lines and patient-derived xenograft models)
- Identification and control of tumour hypersecretion (i.e. carcinoid crisis, excess of insulin and gastrin secretion, paraneoplastic syndromes)
