Ricerc@Sapienza

Purpose Medullary thyroid cancer (MTC) is a neuroendocrine tumour of the thyroid C cells. Pasireotide, a multi-receptor targeted somatostatin analogue, and everolimus, an inhibitor of mTOR, showed antitumour properties in neuroendocrine tumours. Aim of this study was to evaluate pasireotide alone and in combination with everolimus in patients with MTC.

Somatostatin analogs have an important role in the medical therapy of neuroendocrine tumors (NETs). Octreotide and lanreotide, both somatostatin analogs binding with high affinity for the somatostatin receptor (SSTR)2, can control symptoms in functional NETs. In addition, these compounds, because of their antiproliferative effects, can stabilize growth of well-differentiated NETs. Pasireotide is a novel multireceptor-targeted somatostatin analog with high affinity for SSTR1, 2, 3, and 5.