Prolactin

Prolactin (PRL) is a peptide hormone belonging to the growth hormone family, mainly secreted by eosinophils in anterior pituitary. It can participate in the normal development and function maintaining of various organs such as breast, ovary, and testis through autocrine and paracrine pathways. In clinical practice, PRL is mainly used for the differential diagnosis of pituitary prolactinoma (PRLoma). PRLoma is the most common type of functional pituitary adenoma, characterized by sexual dysfunction and breast hyperplasia induced by hyperprolactinemia, and may be accompanied by headache and visual field defect caused by mass effect. Therefore, immunohistochemistry, imaging examination, and hormone level measurement based on clinical symptoms have become the main diagnostic methods for PRLoma. In addition, some research has shown that positive expression of PRL indicates the good prognosis of breast cancer patients, but other scholars pointed out that PRL can promote the occurrence and development of breast cancer tissue, so the relationship between them needs further analysis.