VIPoma natural history, complications and prognosis

If left untreated, patients with VIPoma may progress to develop watery diarrhea, abdominal pain, bloating, nausea, vomiting, skin rash, backache, flushing, and lethargy. Common complications of VIPoma include metastasis, cardiac arrest from low blood potassium level, and dehydration. The presence of metastasis is associated with a particularly poor prognosis among patients with VIPoma, with a 5 year survival rate of 60%.

• If left untreated, patients with VIPoma may progress to develop watery diarrhea, abdominal pain, bloating, nausea, vomiting, skin rash, backache, flushing, and lethargy.^[1]
• VIPoma have a very slow growth rate compared to the most malignant tumors.

Common complications of VIPoma include:^[2][3]

• Metastasis
• Cardiac arrest from low blood potassium level
• Dehydration

• Surgery can usually cure VIPomas. However, in one-third to one-half of patients, the tumor has spread by the time of diagnosis and cannot be cured.^[4]
• The 5-year survival for patients with localized VIPoma is 94% whereas metastatic pancreatic VIPomas is 60%, respectively.

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