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Not too long ago, a friend of mine told me that she might have diabetes. She was clearly surprised and taken aback at the potential diagnosis and was sucking in air. So was I, quite frankly, when she told me what was going on.
Coincidentally, less than a week later, my physician told me that my fasting blood sugar level from my latest round of blood work was too high. I started sucking in air all over again. In addition, my thyroid levels were off again.
I’ve written before about my ongoing battle with my thyroid and how I’m working with my physician to keep it regulated with medication. After doing pretty well with it for a period of time, recently my thyroid levels have been all over the map—from a 0.75 to an 8, to a 2 to a 4—it’s been all over the board.
Much to my surprise, my physician suggested that I might also be having problems with my pituitary gland. She suggested that I have a full panel of blood work, including a re-test of my fasting blood glucose just to either confirm or rule out diabetes, as well as a complete check and MRI of my pituitary gland to see if it might be throwing off my thyroid.
I left the office thinking “what on Earth just happened here?” For so long I’ve been focused on my thyroid gland—it never occurred to me that I might have issues with my pancreas and/or pituitary glands too.
I got home, and began by researching the pituitary. As it turns out, the little pea-shaped gland located in the base of the brain is responsible for all sorts of things, including growth, blood pressure, and the way the thyroid works. So with my new round of thyroid issues, I could see why my doctor suggested the pituitary might be involved somehow.
One symptom that I’ve had lately that had puzzled me is that my breasts have been getting larger. Since I’ve had a complete hysterectomy it’s not a premenstrual issue or anything like that. I’ve gone from a C-cup to a DD in a very short period of time, and it’s been really uncomfortable to deal with. I’ve gained a bit of weight lately, but not a huge amount, so that shouldn’t account for my larger breasts. Actually, it seems that all of the weight I’ve put on has gone straight for my chest.
In my reading about the pituitary, I learned that the gland is also responsible for milk production in the breasts, which I thought was really interesting. While I wasn’t having any discharge of milk from my nipples or anything, I thought it might be tied in somehow to their increased size.
So, here’s a tip for the day—if you notice any discharge coming out of your nipples, please give your doctor a jingle and ask to have your pituitary gland checked out. To be honest with you, if I had noticed milk or anything else leaking from my breasts, I would have immediately thought “oh no—breast cancer!” and completely freaked out. But the pituitary glad might be to blame in some of these cases so it’s something to keep in mind.
Have any of you ever experienced any pituitary-related symptoms? Has your doctor ever mentioned getting it checked out? Stay tuned, and in Part 2 of this story I’ll let you know what happened next!
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Add a Comment6 Comments
I have a pituitary tumor and 4 thyroid nodules as well as acute pancreatits
February 20, 2017 - 8:07pmThis Comment
I found this article... hyperparathyroidism http://www.endocrineweb.com/conditions/pituitary-disorders/multiple-endocrine-neoplasia-type-1
July 28, 2014 - 5:32pmThis Comment
what was the end result about it? cos im 18 had long time thyroid issues, was diagnosed with diabetes last week and also had my boobs go from C cup to almost an E over 5months.
August 3, 2011 - 1:07amThis Comment
Hi!
March 16, 2011 - 8:32pmYour story is great because it's sounds like you have a great doctor. :) I wanted to comment and say that I was just diagnosed with Hypothyroid and have been on Levothyroxine(thyroid hormone) for one month. Just recently my boobs and nipples have grownnnnnn!!!! It's been blowing my mind. I am so puzzled? Maybe my pituitary is somehow linked in with the thyroid?? I'm so stumped and can't find much on the Internet. Very frustrating! Take care!
This Comment
Stumbled here via google and just want to congratulate you on getting to the bottom of your health problems. I am swimming around somewhere in limbo and WISH my doctor would suggest something as concrete as yours did. I'll also add to the links above with womentowomen.com. It's got a lot of holistic women's health information -- including lots on thyroid and adrenal health. I am finding it very helpful as I try to figure out what's causing my symptoms. Look forward to reading more.
June 28, 2008 - 9:30pmThis Comment
Again, great info, Michelle.
There are actually some Web sites out there dedicated to these glands including:
http://www.pituitary.org/
http://pathology.jhu.edu/pancreas/BasicOverview1.php
http://www.thyroid.org/
Thanks!
June 26, 2008 - 3:30pmThis Comment