The pump is a device in wide use for diabetics who need insulin. It usually is an elastic plastic ball which is filled with medicine under pressure and as it contracts very slowly it squeezes out the medicine slowly at a steady rate into a small plastic catheter attached to a needle which is correctly positioned under the skin.
In this article by Dr. Eugene Woltering (this is a technical article), he discusses the various methods for administering octreotide acetate drugs: https://www.carcinoid.org/medpro/docs/WoltPump2005.htm.
Here is some of what Dr. Woltering says about the pump: “Continuous subcutaneous infusions of octreotide acetate have been used by some physicians to take advantage of the rapid absorption of octreotide by the subcutaneous tissues. In this scenario the blood levels of octreotide begin to rise when the pump is turned on and continue to do so until the “steady state” is achieved—usually about 2-4 hours. Likewise, following the cessation of the subcutaneous infusion of octreotide, blood levels begin to fall and are back to insignificant levels after 6-8 hours (depending on dose used).Thus, the pump is ideal therapy for a patient who needs to be treated with high dose radiolabeled somatostatin analog therapy (like the 177 Lu, 90Y or 111In- based therapies) or has a negative Octreoscan in the past and wants to obtain the maximum sensitivity of this test. Another main advantage of pump- based therapy is the ability of a patient to increase or decrease the rate of infusion on a daily or weekly basis to control symptoms. “
