National Center for Advancing and Translational Sciences Genetic and Rare Diseases Information Center, a program of the National Center for Advancing and Translational Sciences

Paragangliomas 4



Other Names:
PGL4; Pheochromocytoma, extraadrenal and cervical paraganglioma; SDHB-Related Hereditary Paraganglioma-Pheochromocytoma Syndrome; PGL4; Pheochromocytoma, extraadrenal and cervical paraganglioma; SDHB-Related Hereditary Paraganglioma-Pheochromocytoma Syndrome; Paragangliomas, hereditary extraadrenal; Pheochromocytoma, familial extraadrenal; Paraganglioma, familial malignant See More
This disease is grouped under:

This table lists symptoms that people with this disease may have. For most diseases, symptoms will vary from person to person. People with the same disease may not have all the symptoms listed. This information comes from a database called the Human Phenotype Ontology (HPO) . The HPO collects information on symptoms that have been described in medical resources. The HPO is updated regularly. Use the HPO ID to access more in-depth information about a symptom.

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Medical Terms Other Names
Learn More:
HPO ID
5%-29% of people have these symptoms
Gastrointestinal stroma tumor 0100723
Neuroblastoma
Cancer of early nerve cells
0003006
Paraganglioma of head and neck 0002864
Percent of people who have these symptoms is not available through HPO
Adrenal pheochromocytoma 0006748
Adult onset
Symptoms begin in adulthood
0003581
Autosomal dominant inheritance 0000006
Chemodectoma 0030074
Cranial nerve paralysis 0006824
Elevated urinary catecholamines 0011976
Episodic paroxysmal anxiety 0000740
Extraadrenal pheochromocytoma 0006737
Glomus jugular tumor 0003001
Hyperhidrosis
Excessive sweating
Increased sweating
Profuse sweating
Sweating
Sweating profusely
Sweating, increased
[ more ]
0000975
Hypertension associated with pheochromocytoma 0002640
Incomplete penetrance 0003829
Palpitations
Missed heart beat
Skipped heart beat
[ more ]
0001962
Pulsatile tinnitus 0008629
Recurrent paroxysmal headache 0002331
Renal cell carcinoma
Cancer starting in small tubes in kidneys
0005584
Tachycardia
Fast heart rate
Heart racing
Racing heart
[ more ]
0001649
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Last updated: 7/1/2020

Making a diagnosis for a genetic or rare disease can often be challenging. Healthcare professionals typically look at a person’s medical history, symptoms, physical exam, and laboratory test results in order to make a diagnosis. The following resources provide information relating to diagnosis and testing for this condition. If you have questions about getting a diagnosis, you should contact a healthcare professional.

Testing Resources

  • The Genetic Testing Registry (GTR) provides information about the genetic tests for this condition. The intended audience for the GTR is health care providers and researchers. Patients and consumers with specific questions about a genetic test should contact a health care provider or a genetics professional.

If you need medical advice, you can look for doctors or other healthcare professionals who have experience with this disease. You may find these specialists through advocacy organizations, clinical trials, or articles published in medical journals. You may also want to contact a university or tertiary medical center in your area, because these centers tend to see more complex cases and have the latest technology and treatments.

If you can’t find a specialist in your local area, try contacting national or international specialists. They may be able to refer you to someone they know through conferences or research efforts. Some specialists may be willing to consult with you or your local doctors over the phone or by email if you can't travel to them for care.

You can find more tips in our guide, How to Find a Disease Specialist. We also encourage you to explore the rest of this page to find resources that can help you find specialists.

Healthcare Resources


Support and advocacy groups can help you connect with other patients and families, and they can provide valuable services. Many develop patient-centered information and are the driving force behind research for better treatments and possible cures. They can direct you to research, resources, and services. Many organizations also have experts who serve as medical advisors or provide lists of doctors/clinics. Visit the group’s website or contact them to learn about the services they offer. Inclusion on this list is not an endorsement by GARD.

Organizations Supporting this Disease


These resources provide more information about this condition or associated symptoms. The in-depth resources contain medical and scientific language that may be hard to understand. You may want to review these resources with a medical professional.

Where to Start

  • Genetics Home Reference (GHR) contains information on Paragangliomas 4. This website is maintained by the National Library of Medicine.
  • The National Cancer Institute provides the most current information on cancer for patients, health professionals, and the general public.

In-Depth Information

  • GeneReviews provides current, expert-authored, peer-reviewed, full-text articles describing the application of genetic testing to the diagnosis, management, and genetic counseling of patients with specific inherited conditions.
  • The Monarch Initiative brings together data about this condition from humans and other species to help physicians and biomedical researchers. Monarch’s tools are designed to make it easier to compare the signs and symptoms (phenotypes) of different diseases and discover common features. This initiative is a collaboration between several academic institutions across the world and is funded by the National Institutes of Health. Visit the website to explore the biology of this condition.
  • Online Mendelian Inheritance in Man (OMIM) is a catalog of human genes and genetic disorders. Each entry has a summary of related medical articles. It is meant for health care professionals and researchers. OMIM is maintained by Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. 
  • PubMed is a searchable database of medical literature and lists journal articles that discuss Paragangliomas 4. Click on the link to view a sample search on this topic.

Questions sent to GARD may be posted here if the information could be helpful to others. We remove all identifying information when posting a question to protect your privacy. If you do not want your question posted, please let us know.