Recently, I mentioned the possibility of insulinomae ("Insulinomas" is also a correct plural.) maybe actually being at least some of the time due originally to a problem with progenitor cells that create beta cells, and that if so that might explain the scatter shot character of these tumors throughout the pancreas since a past study (2008 if memory serves) indicates that beta cell creation happens in waves. Remember that like all other concepts about insulinoma generation this is still a hypothesis and nothing more till there are reputable studies and independent confirming studies. In a recent pers. com. a researcher in the field (whose name I don't know if I can say publicly for privacy's sake) of U. WI School of Medicine and Public Health yesterday very kindly introduced me to some papers and information, including a study from Germany in 2010 on EpCAM expression in human insulinomas. EpCAM is produced by the progenitor cells but in humans it turns out that it appears at high levels in 38% of benign insulinomas and in 78% and 80% of malignant insulinomas and their metastases, respectively. Human and ferret insulinomas will differ but it might pay to look at EpCAM expression in ferret insulinomas to see what the levels are like. The article can be read here: http://eje-online.org/content/162/2/391.long Sukie (not a vet) Recommended ferret health links: http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/ferrethealth/ http://ferrethealth.org/archive/ http://www.afip.org/ferrets/index.html http://www.miamiferret.org/ http://www.ferrethealth.msu.edu/ http://www.ferretcongress.org/ http://www.trifl.org/index.shtml http://homepage.mac.com/sukie/sukiesferretlinks.html all ferret topics: http://listserv.ferretmailinglist.org/archives/ferret-search.html "All hail the procrastinators for they shall rule the world tomorrow." (2010, Steve Crandall) On change for its own sake: "You can go really fast if you just jump off the cliff." (2010, Steve Crandall) [Posted in FML 7160]