Clinical characteristics and comparative analysis of PD-1/PD-L1 inhibitor-induced pituitary dysfunction versus other pituitary disorders

Abstract This study aims to investigate the clinical characteristics of programmed cell death protein-1 (PD-1) or programmed cell death ligand-1 (PD-L1) inhibitors-induced pituitary injury (pituitary-irAE) by comparing with other pituitary diseases. We retrospectively reviewed clinical records of pa...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Yan Xiao, Deyue Jiang, Shengjie Wang, Lei Fu, Lingtong Ye, Erhan Zheng, Zhaohui Lv, Yiming Mu, Wenwen Gong, Qinghua Guo
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Nature Portfolio 2025-07-01
Series:Scientific Reports
Subjects:
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-05563-3
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1849238399778553856
author Yan Xiao
Deyue Jiang
Shengjie Wang
Lei Fu
Lingtong Ye
Erhan Zheng
Zhaohui Lv
Yiming Mu
Wenwen Gong
Qinghua Guo
author_facet Yan Xiao
Deyue Jiang
Shengjie Wang
Lei Fu
Lingtong Ye
Erhan Zheng
Zhaohui Lv
Yiming Mu
Wenwen Gong
Qinghua Guo
author_sort Yan Xiao
collection DOAJ
description Abstract This study aims to investigate the clinical characteristics of programmed cell death protein-1 (PD-1) or programmed cell death ligand-1 (PD-L1) inhibitors-induced pituitary injury (pituitary-irAE) by comparing with other pituitary diseases. We retrospectively reviewed clinical records of patients who were admitted for pituitary-irAE, idiopathic isolated ACTH deficiency (IIAD), and lymphocytic hypophysitis (LYH) from January 2015 to June 2024. Among 3689 patients treated with PD-1/PD-L1 inhibitors, 0.596% patients developed pituitary-irAE. The mean age of onset was 59.41 ± 10.69 years, with 13 patients (59.09%) being male. The median duration from symptom onset to confirmed diagnosis was 5.50 (2.00, 9.25) months. The clinical symptoms were similar between pituitary-irAE and IIAD, which mainly manifested as fatigue and appetite loss. Polydipsia/polyuria and amenorrhea/menstrual disorders were mainly found in patients with LYH. Central adrenal insufficiency was observed in all patients with pituitary-irAE, with cortisol concentrations typically falling below the detectable limit. Pituitary MRI appeared normal in 52.63% patients with pituitary-irAE. Furthermore, some patients with pituitary-irAE exhibited partial or complete functional recovery of the pituitary gland after hormone replacement therapy. The clinical manifestations observed in patients with pituitary-irAE are analogous to those seen in individuals with IIAD, yet they differ from the presentations of LYH.
format Article
id doaj-art-acd3bdc50b1f4e009f795786a2da7618
institution Kabale University
issn 2045-2322
language English
publishDate 2025-07-01
publisher Nature Portfolio
record_format Article
series Scientific Reports
spelling doaj-art-acd3bdc50b1f4e009f795786a2da76182025-08-20T04:01:36ZengNature PortfolioScientific Reports2045-23222025-07-0115111010.1038/s41598-025-05563-3Clinical characteristics and comparative analysis of PD-1/PD-L1 inhibitor-induced pituitary dysfunction versus other pituitary disordersYan Xiao0Deyue Jiang1Shengjie Wang2Lei Fu3Lingtong Ye4Erhan Zheng5Zhaohui Lv6Yiming Mu7Wenwen Gong8Qinghua Guo9Department of Endocrinology, The First Medical Center, Chinese PLA General HospitalDepartment of Endocrinology, The First Medical Center, Chinese PLA General HospitalDepartment of Endocrinology, The First Medical Center, Chinese PLA General HospitalDepartment of Endocrinology, The First Medical Center, Chinese PLA General HospitalDepartment of Endocrinology, The First Medical Center, Chinese PLA General HospitalDepartment of Clinical Medicine, The Capital Medical UniversityDepartment of Endocrinology, The First Medical Center, Chinese PLA General HospitalDepartment of Endocrinology, The First Medical Center, Chinese PLA General HospitalDepartment of Pharmacy, The First Medical Center, Chinese PLA General HospitalDepartment of Endocrinology, The First Medical Center, Chinese PLA General HospitalAbstract This study aims to investigate the clinical characteristics of programmed cell death protein-1 (PD-1) or programmed cell death ligand-1 (PD-L1) inhibitors-induced pituitary injury (pituitary-irAE) by comparing with other pituitary diseases. We retrospectively reviewed clinical records of patients who were admitted for pituitary-irAE, idiopathic isolated ACTH deficiency (IIAD), and lymphocytic hypophysitis (LYH) from January 2015 to June 2024. Among 3689 patients treated with PD-1/PD-L1 inhibitors, 0.596% patients developed pituitary-irAE. The mean age of onset was 59.41 ± 10.69 years, with 13 patients (59.09%) being male. The median duration from symptom onset to confirmed diagnosis was 5.50 (2.00, 9.25) months. The clinical symptoms were similar between pituitary-irAE and IIAD, which mainly manifested as fatigue and appetite loss. Polydipsia/polyuria and amenorrhea/menstrual disorders were mainly found in patients with LYH. Central adrenal insufficiency was observed in all patients with pituitary-irAE, with cortisol concentrations typically falling below the detectable limit. Pituitary MRI appeared normal in 52.63% patients with pituitary-irAE. Furthermore, some patients with pituitary-irAE exhibited partial or complete functional recovery of the pituitary gland after hormone replacement therapy. The clinical manifestations observed in patients with pituitary-irAE are analogous to those seen in individuals with IIAD, yet they differ from the presentations of LYH.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-05563-3Pituitary dysfunction induced by immune checkpoint inhibitorsProgrammed cell death-1 proteinProgrammed cell death ligand-1Idiopathic isolated ACTH deficiencyLymphocytic hypophysitis
spellingShingle Yan Xiao
Deyue Jiang
Shengjie Wang
Lei Fu
Lingtong Ye
Erhan Zheng
Zhaohui Lv
Yiming Mu
Wenwen Gong
Qinghua Guo
Clinical characteristics and comparative analysis of PD-1/PD-L1 inhibitor-induced pituitary dysfunction versus other pituitary disorders
Scientific Reports
Pituitary dysfunction induced by immune checkpoint inhibitors
Programmed cell death-1 protein
Programmed cell death ligand-1
Idiopathic isolated ACTH deficiency
Lymphocytic hypophysitis
title Clinical characteristics and comparative analysis of PD-1/PD-L1 inhibitor-induced pituitary dysfunction versus other pituitary disorders
title_full Clinical characteristics and comparative analysis of PD-1/PD-L1 inhibitor-induced pituitary dysfunction versus other pituitary disorders
title_fullStr Clinical characteristics and comparative analysis of PD-1/PD-L1 inhibitor-induced pituitary dysfunction versus other pituitary disorders
title_full_unstemmed Clinical characteristics and comparative analysis of PD-1/PD-L1 inhibitor-induced pituitary dysfunction versus other pituitary disorders
title_short Clinical characteristics and comparative analysis of PD-1/PD-L1 inhibitor-induced pituitary dysfunction versus other pituitary disorders
title_sort clinical characteristics and comparative analysis of pd 1 pd l1 inhibitor induced pituitary dysfunction versus other pituitary disorders
topic Pituitary dysfunction induced by immune checkpoint inhibitors
Programmed cell death-1 protein
Programmed cell death ligand-1
Idiopathic isolated ACTH deficiency
Lymphocytic hypophysitis
url https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-05563-3
work_keys_str_mv AT yanxiao clinicalcharacteristicsandcomparativeanalysisofpd1pdl1inhibitorinducedpituitarydysfunctionversusotherpituitarydisorders
AT deyuejiang clinicalcharacteristicsandcomparativeanalysisofpd1pdl1inhibitorinducedpituitarydysfunctionversusotherpituitarydisorders
AT shengjiewang clinicalcharacteristicsandcomparativeanalysisofpd1pdl1inhibitorinducedpituitarydysfunctionversusotherpituitarydisorders
AT leifu clinicalcharacteristicsandcomparativeanalysisofpd1pdl1inhibitorinducedpituitarydysfunctionversusotherpituitarydisorders
AT lingtongye clinicalcharacteristicsandcomparativeanalysisofpd1pdl1inhibitorinducedpituitarydysfunctionversusotherpituitarydisorders
AT erhanzheng clinicalcharacteristicsandcomparativeanalysisofpd1pdl1inhibitorinducedpituitarydysfunctionversusotherpituitarydisorders
AT zhaohuilv clinicalcharacteristicsandcomparativeanalysisofpd1pdl1inhibitorinducedpituitarydysfunctionversusotherpituitarydisorders
AT yimingmu clinicalcharacteristicsandcomparativeanalysisofpd1pdl1inhibitorinducedpituitarydysfunctionversusotherpituitarydisorders
AT wenwengong clinicalcharacteristicsandcomparativeanalysisofpd1pdl1inhibitorinducedpituitarydysfunctionversusotherpituitarydisorders
AT qinghuaguo clinicalcharacteristicsandcomparativeanalysisofpd1pdl1inhibitorinducedpituitarydysfunctionversusotherpituitarydisorders