Insulinoma

Injury	Disease	Nutrition	Poison

Symptoms	Surgery	Test	Special Topic

Endocrine glands

Food and insulin release

Insulinoma

Definition:

An insulinoma is a tumor in the pancreas that produces too much insulin.

Alternative Names:
Insuloma; Islet cells adenoma
Causes, incidence, and risk factors:

The pancreas is an organ in the abdomen that makes the hormone insulin. Insulin is required to regulate blood sugar levels. Tumors of the pancreas that produce too much insulin (hyperinsulinemia) are called insulinomas.

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High insulin levels cause low blood glucose (sugar), also called hypoglycemia. The hypoglycemia may be mild, leading to symptoms such as anxiety and hunger, or severe, leading to seizures, coma, and even death.

Insulinomas are rare tumors. They usually occur as single, small tumors in adults. They are very rare in children. Most children with hyperinsulinism have multiple pockets of overactive insulin-secreting cells in the pancreas, rather than a single discrete tumor.

Most insulinomas are not cancer. However, about five to ten percent are cancer. People with the genetic syndrome called multiple endocrine neoplasia Type I (MENI) are at risk for developing insulinomas.