Diagnosis of prolactinoma in two male-to-female transsexual subjects following high-dose cross-sex hormone therapy

Abstract

Male-to-female transsexual persons use oestrogens+antiandrogens to adapt their physical bodies to the female sex. Doses are usually somewhat higher than those used by hypogonadal women receiving oestrogen replacement. Particularly in cases of self-adminstration of cross-sex hormones, doses may be very high. Oestrogens are powerful stimulators of synthesis and release of prolactin and serum prolactin levels are usually somewhat increased following oestrogen treatment. Prolactinomas have been reported in male-to-female transsexual persons, both after use of high and conventional doses of oestrogens but remain rare events. We report two new cases of prolactinomas in male-to-female transsexual persons, one in a 41-year-old subject who had used nonsupervised high-dose oestrogen treatment since the age of 23years and another one in a 42year old who had initiated oestrogen treatment at the age of 17years. Their serum prolactin levels were strongly increased, and the diagnosis of a pituitary tumour was confirmed by imaging techniques. Both cases responded well to treatment with cabergoline treatment whereupon serum prolactin normalised. Our two cases are added to the three cases of prolactinomas in the literature in persons who had used supraphysiological doses of oestrogens.