Carcinoid tumours of the small bowel colon and rectum

摘要

Carcinoid tumours originate from enterochromaffin cells within the diffuse endocrine system. Representing a confusing group of tumours displaying a wide range of behaviour, their clinical and histologic recognition was initially described in 1888 by Lubarsch. The term “carcinoid” was first applied to these tumours in 1907 by Obendorfer. In 1914, Gossett and Masson demonstrated the argentaffinreducing properties of appendiceal carcinoids and these tumours became known as “argentaffinomas”. The association between carcinoid tumours and serotonin production was first reported by Lembeck in 1953, while the first description of the carcinoid syndrome was published by Waldenstrom in 1954. The variable nature of carcinoids was first documented by Sandler and Snow. The amine precursor and decarboxylation abilities (APUD) of these tumours were recognized by Pearse in 1969 and carcinoid tumours were termed as APUDomas, now considered as part of a group of tumours known as neuroendocrine tumours (NET). As a result, the previously called “carcinoid tumours” were renamed “welldifferentiated neuroendocrine tumours”.