When the tumour is too large, or ha

When the tumour is too large, or has spread too far, surgical removal may not be a viable option.</p> <h3>Medication</h3> <p>If the tumour cannot be removed through surgery, medication can help relieve symptoms.</p> <p>The most commonly used drug is octreotide, which can help relieve symptoms in the majority of people and may also help to slow the tumour’s growth.</p> <p>Other medication may include:</p> <ul><li>Antihistamines, to treat the facial flushing;</li> <li>Bronchodilators, to treat the wheezing and help ease breathing;</li> <li>Alpha interferon, which may help ease some symptoms associated with carcinoid syndrome;</li> <li>Steroids or theophylline, which may be prescribed for treatment of lung carcinoids;</li> <li>Antidiarrhoeal therapy, which may include loperamide, and;</li> <li>Diuretics, which may be used to increase urine output.</li> </ul><h3>Ablation</h3> <p>Cancerous tissue can be destroyed by using targeted liquid nitrogen or high-energy radio waves that can be injected into the area of the tumour.
Ablation therapy is useful when a tumour has already spread to the liver and surgery is no longer an option.</p> <h3>Hepatic artery embolisation</h3> <p>This involves the insertion of a catheter through a needle near the groin and up the main artery that supplies the blood to the liver.
Through the catheter, the blood supply to the tumour in the liver can be stopped.</p> <h3>Chemotherapy</h3> <p>Chemotherapy may be used when tumours cannot be removed with surgery.
Chemotherapy medication can either be taken orally or by injection.</p> <p>In cases where the tumour has spread to the liver and surgery is not an option, a direct injection of the chemotherapeutic substance into the artery that supplies the liver can deliver a high dose of the medication directly to the liver, without having to expose the entire body to it.</p> <h3>Radiation</h3> <p>If the cancer has spread to the bones, radiation can prove effective in alleviating bone pain, but it is not very effective in reducing the size or further spread of the tumour.</p> <h3>Lifestyle changes</h3> <p>Lifestyle changes that can ease the symptoms of carcinoid syndrome include:</p> <ul><li>Avoiding triggers that cause flushing and other symptoms, such as foods high in tyramine.
These can include (but are not limited to) cheeses, cured meats, fermented foods (such as kimchi or sauerkraut), pickles, sourdough, Vegemite, tap beers and other yeast products, chocolate, fava beans, fish sauce, shrimp paste, soy sauce, bananas, pineapples, coconuts, avocado and foods that have been left to age or left out of the refrigerator;</li> <li>Avoiding large meals;</li> <li>Avoiding alcohol, and;</li> <li>Taking recommended dietary supplements to replace the nutrients lost from <a rel="nofollow" href="/report/general-report/286">diarrhoea</a>.</li> </ul><h2>Potential complications</h2> <ul><li><a rel="nofollow" href="/report/general-report/285">Bowel obstruction</a> – cancer that spreads to the lymph nodes next to the small intestine can cause narrowing and kinking of the intestine, leading to a bowel obstruction;</li> <li>Carcinoid heart disease – a heart valve problem that can cause the valves around your heart to thicken and not function properly;</li> <li>Increased risk of falls from low blood pressure;</li> <li>Bleeding into the digestive tract, and;</li> <li>Carcinoid crisis - people with carcinoid syndrome may experience a carcinoid crisis, which can either occur without any apparent cause, or be induced by stress.
The symptoms of a crisis may include severe <a rel="nofollow" href="/report/general-report/182">hypertension</a> or hypotension, irregular rapid heartbeat, wheezing, shortness of breath and prolonged flushing.
A carcinoid crisis can prove life-threatening and requires careful medical attention.</li> </ul><h2>Prognosis</h2> <p>The outlook for people with carcinoid syndrome depends on the size, spread and location of the underlying carcinoid tumours.