carcinoid syndrome

Definition: a combination of symptoms and lesions mostly produced by the release of serotonin from carcinoid tumors of the gastrointestinal tract that have metastasized to the liver; consists of irregular mottled blushing, flat angiomas of the skin, acquired tricuspid and pulmonary stenosis often with regurgitation, occasionally with some minor involvement of valves on the left side of the heart, diarrhea, bronchial spasm, mental aberration, and excretion of large quantities of 5-hydroxyindoleacetic acid.

Synonym(s): malignant carcinoid syndrome, metastatic carcinoid syndrome

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