Pheochromocytoma (malignant) C74.1

Pheochromocytomas (from Greek phaios=dark, chroma =color) are rare, catecholamine-producing, spontaneously occurring but also hereditary (about 25%), neuroendocrine, unilateral (about 90% are localized on one side) or bilateral localized tumors of the chromaffinous tissue of the adrenal medulla (80% of phaeochromocytomas are localized in the adrenal medulla) or the extraadrenal paraganglia (see below paragangliomas). In children 1/3 of the tumours are located extraadrenally.

90 % of adrenal pheochromocytomas are benign, 10 % malignant (in extraadrenal tumours this applies to about 30 % of the tumours).

Further details see below Pheochromocytoma