Carcinoid – misnomer or misunderstood?

To be honest…this is an excellent post about Carcinoid. I am a survivor of this cancer and it’s refreshing to see the awareness of this syndrome becoming more common. At the time I had to deal with this it was almost like it was unheard of, even by some of my doctors (Luckily not the specialists)

Ronny Allan - Living with Neuroendocrine Cancer

Recently, there’s been a debate on forums regarding the validity of the term ‘Carcinoid’.  I thought I’d gather my thoughts and put to paper. Although the issue is potentially complex , there is one really simple way of looking at it – Carcinoid is a type of Neuroendocrine Tumour and you will find that classification in dozens of booklets and websites internationally. In Meerkat speak – “seemples” 🙂

However, like anything in the world of ‘Carcinoid’ it would be too easy to leave it there. ‘Carcinoid’ is often used as a standalone word and tends not to be suffixed with the word ‘Cancer’ or ‘Tumour’ – unlike Bowel Cancer, Breast Cancer, Prostrate Cancer, Lung Cancer, etc.  The term ‘Carcinoid’ has become entrenched in both pathology and clinical literature over the past 100 years.  The problem with Carcinoid is that it means different things to different people. Some use the term almost exclusively to designate serotonin-producing tumours that result in carcinoid…

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