Abstract:ObjectiveTo discuss the characteristics, diagnosis and treatment of invasive pituitary adenoma (IPA) for reducing misdiagnosis and therapeutic error of this disease.MethodsTwo patients with IPA previously misdiagnosed in other hospitals were treated in Guangdong General Hospital in 2005 and 2006. The clinical data including characteristics, diagnosis and treatment of this disease were summarized and analyzed retrospectively in combination with literature review.ResultsDue to its invasive clinical behavior, IPA was easily misdiagnosed as other similar diseases, which led to subsequent treatment error. Owing to absence of uniform and exact diagnostic criteria, the diagnosis of IPA was usually established via medical history, preoperative imageological examinations, intraoperative findings and postoperative pathological examination. Surgery was the main treatment of IPA, and adjuvant medicine treatment was usually necessary. With low total resection rate, IPA was prone to relapse.ConclusionClinical misdiagnosis and therapeutic error of IPA can only be avoided by mastering the clinical features, diagnosis and treatment of this tumor.