Diagnostics of Thyroid Malignancy and Indications for Surgery in the Elderly and Younger Counterparts: Comparison of 3,749 Patients

Patients with III and IV category of the Bethesda System under levothyroxine non-suppressive therapy have a lower rate of thyroid malignancy

Thyroid nodules (TNs) assigned to the Bethesda System categories III and IV include numerous clinical characteristics, which increase or decrease the risk of malignancy. However, there are very few data regarding the influence of TSH non-suppressive thyroid hormone therapy (NSTHT) on the risk of malignancy in patients in the aforementioned categories. We assessed the number of patients with thyroid nodules assigned to categories III and IV who take TSH NSTHT and if thyroid hormone therapy is associated with a rate of malignancy. We retrospectively analyzed the medical records of 4,716 individuals and selected 532 (11.28%) patients with Bethesda System category III and IV thyroid nodules. All participants underwent surgery, and histopathological verification was obtained in all cases. In all, 33.1% of individuals with category III and IV thyroid nodules took TSH NSTHT. In patients with category III nodules, application of NSTHT was associated with a lower rate of thyroid cancer (TC), though this observation was not significant (OR = 0.55, p = 0.381). In patients with category IV nodules, we demonstrated a significantly lower rate of TC when NSTHT was applied (OR = 0.44, p = 0.005). In conclusion, the prevalence of patients with Bethesda System category III and IV thyroid nodules who take NSTHT is high. TSH NSTHT significantly decreases a rate of malignancy in category IV, but not category III patients.

Does every classical type of well-differentiated thyroid cancer have excellent prognosis? A case series and literature review

Introduction: The classical type of well-differentiated thyroid cancer (WDTC) is the most common endocrine tumor with generally excellent prognosis. WDTC of the WHO stage 1 classification metastasizing to the vertebral column is not often seen for this neoplasm. Here, I present a case series of 14 individuals with aggressive classical type of WDTC. Methods: To identify the most aggressive cases of classical type WDTC, I reviewed the medical records of 4,327 patients consecutively admitted and surgically treated in a single institution for thyroid pathology in the years 2008-2016. Demographic, pathological and outcome data were collected and reviewed. Results: During the study period, 14 (4.02%) patients with aggressive forms of the classical type of WDTC were reviewed: 10 (2.87%) cases with papillary thyroid cancer (PTC) and 4 (1.14%) with follicular thyroid cancer (FTC). The median age at diagnosis was 61 years (31-84 years). Aggressive features such as extrathyroid extension 11/14 (78.57%), positive surgical margins 11/14 (78,57%), lymph node metastases 7/14 (50%), multifocality 6/14 (42.85%), regional tissue infiltration 11/14 (78.57%) and distant metastases 4/14 (28.57%) were observed. Long-term follow-up (median 40 months) demonstrated a high rate of locoregional recurrence in 12/14 (85.71%) individuals. Pulmonary and other distant metastases were observed in 4/14 (28.57%) patients, with mortality in 3/14 (21.42%) individuals. Conclusion: In patients with classical type of WDTC characterized by excellent prognosis, extremely aggressive entities might be observed, making WDTC in some cases an unpredictable tumor.