PEDIATRIC THYROID CARCINOMA: 22 Years of Experience at the Northern Israel Oncology Center (1973-1995)

Over the past 22 years, 16 children with thyroid carcinoma were referred to the Northern Israel Oncology Center. All patients had undergone surgical procedures, either total or subtotal thyroidectomy, and 7 patients had undergone cervical lymph node dissections. Postoperatively, 5 patients underwent thyroid ablation with radioactive ¹³¹I as first treatment. Two patients received postoperative external radiation therapy to a field encompassing the cervical region, superior mediastinum, and both supraclavicular grooves. After a median follow-up of 60 months (range, 5-169 months), all patients are alive with no evidence of recurrent disease. Two patients who had recurrences, one in the submaxillary lymph nodes and one in the lungs, were salvaged successfully with retreatment with ¹³¹I therapy. No severe acute or long-term side effects were exhibited. The long-term results of treatment of pediatric thyroid carcinoma are excellent, but there remains disagreement over the extent of surgical and postsurgical treatment required.     

Differentiated thyroid carcinoma: presentation and follow-up in children and adolescents

To review our Pediatric Endocrinology Division's experience with differentiated thyroid carcinoma (DTC) we analyzed retrospectively the records of patients with DTC that had been seen between June 1988 and June 2008. RESULTS: Forty-five patients (median age 13.7 years, 36 female) were diagnosed (papillary: 40, follicular: 5) with DTC presenting as a solitary nodule (n: 25), thyroid nodule with cervical adenopathy (n: 9) and multinodular goiter (n: 11). All underwent total thyroidectomy with resection of suspicious cervical lymph nodes (CLN). DTC was multicentric in 59% and revealed extrathyroidal extension in 44%. Initially, 44% had CLN metastases and 24% distant metastases. All patients underwent thyroid remnant ablation with 131I and suppressive treatment. Median follow-up was 5.1 years with a disease-free survival rate at 5 years of follow-up of 75%. Eleven percent presented recurrences. CONCLUSION: Pediatric DTC has an aggressive behavior at presentation. Higher preoperative TSH levels were significantly associated with a more advanced disease at diagnosis. CLT was present concomitantly in a quarter of the patients and further studies are needed to establish differences in these patients' outcome. Diagnostic approach, total thyroidectomy, 131I treatment and thyrotropin suppression allowed a good progression-free survival rate.     

Papillary thyroid cancer with pulmonary metastases beginning in childhood: Clinical course over three decades

We present a case of childhood papillary thyroid cancer with persistent but stable pulmonary metastases for over three decades in order to highlight the natural history and clinical features of this unusual disease entity. A nine-year-old girl had thyroidectomy and cervical lymph node dissection followed by neck irradiation for invasive papillary thyroid cancer. Diffuse pulmonary metastases were present at the time of diagnosis and were treated with radioactive iodine 10 and 30 years later; both the chest radiographs and the patient remained stable throughout. This case illustrates the potential indolence of thyroid cancer when it presents during childhood. © 1995 Wiley-Liss, Inc.     

Thyroid carcinoma in children and adolescents

A clinical and pathological study was undertaken to define the prevalence, clinical presentation and outcome of thyroid carcinoma in children and adolescents. Clinical records from 48 patients under 20 years of age at diagnosis, out of 372 patients with thyroid cancer examined between 1980 and 1994, were retrospectively reviewed. Female/male ratio was 3.8/1. None had a previous positive history of head and neck irradiation. Patients underwent near-total (44 patients) or partial (4 patients) thyroidectomy followed by ¹³¹I ablation of residual thyroid tissue. The mean follow up period was 58.4 months, ranging between 2 and 190 months. Clinically a thyroid mass was present in 41 patients, 28 of whom also showed neck lymph node involvement. Node metastases were present in 50% of the patients and lung metastases in 4.2%. Histological type was papillary in 41, follicular in 6, and medullary in 1 case. Surgical complications were observed in 19 patients (40%). In 3 patients papillary thyroid cancer was associated with chronic lymphocytic thyroiditis. All patients were treated with l-thyroxine suppressive therapy. Recurrence of cancer after surgical and radio-iodine treatment was observed only in one patient 8 months after surgery. Conclusion Our experience demonstrates that thyroid carcinoma in childhood cannot be considered a rare occurrence, since it represents about 13% of all thyroid cancers, and is frequently associated with lymph node but rarely with distant metastases. Nevertheless, the prognosis of thyroid carcinoma in childhood is fairly good. Received: 16 January 1996 / Accepted: 1 July 1996     

Pediatric thyroid carcinoma: 22 years of experience at the Northern Israel Oncology Center (1973-1995)

Over the past 22 years, 16 children with thyroid carcinoma were referred to the Northern Israel Oncology Center. All patients had undergone surgical procedures, either total or subtotal thyroidectomy, and 7 patients had undergone cervical lymph node dissections. Postoperatively, 5 patients underwent thyroid ablation with radioactive ¹³¹I as first treatment. Two patients received postoperative external radiation therapy to a field encompassing the cervical region, superior mediastinum, and both supraclavicular grooves. After a median follow-up of 60 months (range, 5-169 months), all patients are alive with no evidence of recurrent disease. Two patients who had recurrences, one in the submaxillary lymph nodes and one in the lungs, were salvaged successfully with retreatment with ¹³¹I therapy. No severe acute or long-term side effects were exhibited. The long-term results of treatment of pediatric thyroid carcinoma are excellent, but there remains disagreement over the extent of surgical and postsurgical treatment required.     

Differentiated thyroid cancer

Objective: The retrospective analysis of the case files of children with differentiated thyroid carcinoma (DTC) was performed to define the disease by its presentation, clinical course and outcome of radioiodine therapy.Methods: Between 1967 to October 2002,1754 patients with thyroid cancer were treated in the Dept of Neuclear Medicine, AIIMS, out of which 122 (7%) were ≶ 20 years of age (71 girls and 51 boys). The mean age was 15.8 ± 3.6 years and the mean duration of follow-up was 90 ± 59.3 months. Mean tumor size was 4.4 cm. Histologically, 85% of the patients had papillary and rest follicular carcinoma. Cervical lymph node involvement was seen in 64%, and distant metastases, mainly pulmonary, in 23% of the patients. The presentation of the disease was very aggressive in the first decade of life with male preponderance. All but one patient in this age group had nodal and/or distant metastases; in 83.3% the disease had spread to the lymph nodes and 67% had metastases to the lungs. The post-surgery 48-hour mean radioiodine neck uptake was 10.5 ± 7.6%.Results: 94% of the residual thyroid, 88% of nodal metastases and 71% of pulmonary metastases were ablated requiring mean cumulative doses of 2.8 ± 2.7 GBq, 4.5 ± 2.7 GBq and 10.4 ± 7.9 GBq of¹³¹I, respectively. Average number of doses required for remnant, nodal and pulmonary metastases ablation were 1.3, 2.2 and 3.3, respectively. 80% of the patients with only remnant thyroid tissue and 50% with cervical lymph node metastases got ablated with a single dose of¹³¹I. Overall, 87% patients were currently free of disease. While, nine patients had nodal recurrence between surgery and radioiodine treatment, no recurrence was observed thereafter and 3 disease related deaths producing overall mortality of 2.5% (all in children ≶10 years of age) were seen in the mean follow-up of 7.5 years.Conclusion: Differentiated thyroid cancer in children and adolescents is rare but aggressive. The biological behavior differs from that in adults and is related to the age. Younger the age (≶10 years), more aggressive and widespread is the disease with male preponderance and high mortality. The Post-surgical radioiodine ablation/therapy is an important and effective adjuvant in the management of DTC in children and adolescents and even though they present with advance disease, long-term survival and overall prognosis is good.     

Papillary thyroid carcinoma: Demographics,treatment, and outcome in eleven pediatric patients treated at a single institution

We describe 11 cases (8 females, 3 males) of papillary thyroid carcinoma in children treated at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital over a 33-year period, and review the literature. Ages ranged from 7–25 years (median, 16 years). Six patients had primary papillary thyroid carcinoma. Five patients had secondary papillary thyroid carcinoma after treatment of Hodgkin's disease (n = 2), acute lymphoblastic leukemia (n = 2), and neuroblastoma (n = 1) with chemotherapy and cervical radiation. The typical presentation was either cervical lymphadenopathy or a thyroid mass of short duration. Treatment consisted of thyroidectomy, cervical lymph node dissection, and postoperative thyroid hormone replacement (n = 11), parathyroid reimplantation (n = 1), ¹³¹I ablation (n = 4), external-beam irradiation (n = 1), and chemotherapy with doxorubicin (n = 1) or carboplatin and topotecan (n = 1). Nine patients are alive without evidence of disease 3.0–22.4 years from diagnosis. One patient has persistent but stable disease 17.3 years after diagnosis. One patient relapsed with metastatic lung disease 0.8 years after the initial diagnosis. He continues to do well after a brief but unsustained complete radiographic remission of disease to combination chemotherapy with carboplatin and topotecan. Our review supports excellent long-term outcome for primary or secondary papillary thyroid carcinoma in pediatric patients, although complications may require close follow-up in a multidisciplinary setting. Med. Pediatr. Oncol. 28:433–440, 1997. © 1997 Wiley-Liss, Inc.     

Management of childhood and adolescent thyroid carcinoma: long-term follow-up and clinical characteristics.

AIM: This analysis was performed to evaluate clinical factors such as local tumor control, control of distant metastasis, survival, and complications in children and adolescents with thyroid carcinoma. MATERIALS AND METHODS: From 1960 to 2003, 21 children and adolescents (16 girls and 5 boys, aged 4 to 15 years) were treated for thyroid carcinoma in our departments. Clinical data, operative findings, pathological findings, operative procedures, intra- and postoperative complications and follow-up were evaluated. Follow-up of patients ranged from 3 to 42 years (median, 20 years). RESULTS: Papillary carcinoma was found in 20 patients (95%) and follicular carcinoma in one patient. Cervical lymph node metastases were found in 12 out of 21 patients (57.1%) when thyroid carcinoma was diagnosed, and 5 patients (23.8%) had pulmonary metastasis. In patients with pulmonary metastasis, total thyroidectomy and bilateral radical lymph node resection was performed in 3 patients, lobectomy of the thyroid and radical lymph node resection in one patient, and partial thyroidectomy in one patient. All three patients who underwent total thyroidectomy are still alive. Internal irradiation by 131I and thyroid hormone replacement therapy was administered to 2 of 3 patients with pulmonary metastasis. CONCLUSION: Despite metastasis in the lymph nodes and even the lungs, the prognosis for patients with papillary carcinoma is good. Total thyroidectomy and positive 131I therapy are recommended for childhood and adolescent thyroid carcinoma with pulmonary metastasis.     

Thyroid carcinoma in childhood: Management and follow up of 11 cases

Eleven patients under 16 years of age, 5 males and 6 females were diagnosed with thyroid carcinoma in our hospital between 1974 and 1992. Median age at diagnosis was 9.5 years (range: 5.2–15.7 years). The presenting sign was a single thyroid nodule in 5, multiple thyroid nodules in 1, cervical adenopathy in 3, and thyroid nodules in conjunction with cervical adenopathy in 2 patients. Histological diagnosis was papillary carcinoma in 5 cases, follicular carcinoma in 2, mixed papillary-follicular carcinoma in 3, and anaplastic carcinoma in one. Only 4 patients had no extrathyroidal metastases at diagnosis. All but one subjects underwent total thyroidectomy, either one-staged or two-staged. If metastases were present, ablative radio-iodine therapy followed. Two patients died within a few months, one from complications of lung metastases, another from diffuse spread of anaplastic carcinoma. Two patients were lost to follow up; 7 patients have been followed for 9.0–18.0 years. Of these, one patient with initial lung metastases has had six recurrences which were successfully treated each time with radio-iodine although thyroglobulin levels remained elevated; another patient who had an initial subtotal thyroidectomy incurred a relapse 12 years later during pregnancy but is doing well now after more intensive surgery. We propose that children with differentiated thyroid carcinoma should undergo total thyroidectomy and selective lymph node extirpation by a skilled surgeon followed by whole body radio-iodine scan and ablative radio-iodine treatment if necessary. Plasma thyroglobulin can then be used as a tumour marker and suppressive levothyroxine does should be given.     

小儿分化型甲状腺癌的外科治疗策略

目的 探讨小儿甲状腺癌的临床特点，选择恰当的外科治疗方法，减少合并症的发生。方法 回顾性分析1975年7月～1997年12月我院头颈外科治疗的15岁以下31例小儿分化型甲状腺癌的临床资料、根据病变范围程度，选择腺叶峡部切除，次全切除或近全切除，甲状腺全切除治疗甲状腺原发灶，颈淋巴结转移行根治性或改良根治性清扫术。颈淋巴结清扫术的范围包括Ⅱ，Ⅲ，Ⅳ，Ⅴ和Ⅵ区。远处转移行Ⅰ或甲状腺素治疗。结果 31例中乳头状癌25例，滤泡癌6例，术后随访5～27年，平均随访13年8个月，无死亡病例。局部复发2例，颈部复发1例，复发率为9．7％(3／31)。颈淋巴结转移率为74．2％(23／31)，甲状腺外浸润占58．1(18／31)。全甲状腺切除的合并症为42．9%(3／7)，腺叶及次全切除合并症为8．3％(2／24)。结论 小儿分化型甲状腺癌病程长，转移率高，甲状腺外浸润较成年人更常见，但预后较成人好。主张行腺叶及次全切除术或近全切除，癌在甲状腺外侵及的器官及神经应尽可能保留其功能的完整，少许残留癌可行Ⅰ或甲状腺素治疗。     

甲状舌管囊肿合并甲状腺乳头状癌的诊断与治疗

目的对甲状舌管囊肿合并甲状腺乳头状癌患儿的临床资料进行分析,总结此类少见疾病的诊断及处理方式。方法2013年1月至2017年2月华中科技大学同济医学院附属同济医院共收治3例甲状舌管囊肿合并甲状腺乳头状癌患者,均为女性,年龄分别为27岁(患者1)、53岁(患者2)、9岁(患者3),均以颈部或颏下囊实性包块为主要症状就诊。其中1例在术前通过细针穿刺诊断为甲状腺乳头状癌,经术中冰冻切片再次确诊,行双侧甲状腺全切术;其他2例首次手术仅行包块切除,术后病理检查结果提示恶性病变,分别行双侧甲状腺切除和(或)双侧淋巴结清扫术。术后行131I治疗。结果3例均顺利完成一次或多次手术,术中无输血,术后7天内出院。患者1及患者2分别随访5年、4年,随访期间无症状存活,无复发;通过甲状腺素的补充,甲状腺激素水平正常。患者3术后2个月出现肺部多发小结节,不排除转移,后行131I治疗,3个月后复查无明显病灶。结论甲状舌管囊肿合并甲状腺乳头状癌患者行甲状腺全切术效果理想,术后131I治疗可减少复发,补充外源性甲状腺素可维持激素水平及儿童患者的生长发育。     

Anaplastic transformation from papillary thyroid carcinoma with increased serum CA19-9

A 24-year-old woman presented with anaplastic transformation from papillary thyroid carcinoma with increased serum CA19-9. The patient had been diagnosed as having papillary thyroid carcinoma with lung metastasis at 11 years of age. She received a total thyroidectomy with cervical lymph node dissection followed by iodine-131 ((131)I) therapy over 12 years, but died due to sudden onset of rapid dissemination. Elevated serum CA19-9 was detected in the terminal stage, and anaplastic transformation was confirmed by post-mortem examination. Although there are few clinical reports suggesting a prognostic indicator for anaplastic thyroid carcinoma, CA19-9 may be a useful serum marker for this tumor.     

Surgical treatment of differentiated thyroid carcinoma in children.

INTRODUCTION: A retrospective clinical study was carried out to define the appropriate definitive operation for treating differentiated thyroid carcinoma (DTC) in children. METHODS: During a 24-year period between 1974 and 1997, 18 children younger than 16 years at presentation were histopathologically proven to have DTC in Hacettepe University Children's Hospital, Department of Pediatric Surgery. The clinical characteristics on admission, operative findings, procedures, operative complications, and follow-up results according to definitive operations were compared to find out the appropriate procedure. RESULTS: There were 15 female (83.3%) and 3 male (16.7%) patients yielding a female/male ratio of 5 and the average age being 11.6+/-2.1 years. The definitive operations were near total thyroidectomy, total thyroidectomy, near total thyroidectomy plus excision of the only palpable lymph nodes (EPLN), total thyroidectomy plus EPLN and total thyroidectomy plus modified radical neck dissection (MRND) in 3 (16.7%), 3 (16.7%), 1 (5.5%), 9 (50%), and 2 (11.1 %) patients respectively. Among the patients having undergone near total thyroidectomy, one had recurrences both in the thyroid bed and the cervical lymph nodes. In a patient undergoing almost total thyroidectomy and EPLN, recurrences involving thyroid bed, cervical lymph nodes and lungs were encountered. In 9 patients undergoing total thyroidectomy and EPLN 4 had cervical lymph node recurrences. Complications have included permanent hypoparathyroidism following total thyroidectomy and MRND. Additionally, operations for recurrences resulted in unilateral permanent recurrent laryngeal nerve palsies in two patients. CONCLUSIONS: Total thyroidectomy with evaluation of central compartment, entire jugular chain and region of lower spinal accessory nerve and removal of all identifiable lymph nodes seems to be the most appropriate surgical treatment for DTC encountered in children.     

Thyroid cancer in children and adolescents

During the period 1972–1982, only 10 of the 105 patients under 20 years of age who underwent thyroid surgery (9.5%) had thyroid cancer. In these 10 cases total thyroidectomy was the treatment of choice. Lymphadenectomy was perfomed in 6 cases following intraoperative histological examination. In all cases, a total body scan was done 30 days after surgical excision. Three patients required complementary radiometabolic therapy. In three cases, lymph node metastases (found during follow-up visits at various times after the first procedure) were removed. All 10 patients are presently alive and without signs of disease. The authors, in their confirmation of the favorable prognosis of thyroid cancer in children and adolescents, stress the advantages of using near-total thyroidectomy and radiometabolic therapy in controlling the disease. Offprint requests to: L. Perrelli at the above address     

Differentiated thyroid cancer in children and adolescents: the importance of adequate surgery and review of literature.

Within 25 years, 13 girls and 5 boys between the ages of 9 to 20 years were treated for differentiated thyroid cancer (DTC) at our institution. In 67% of the cases the diagnosis was made at an advanced stage indicated by cervical lymphnode metastases, two children showed metastases of the lung. Except for one girl, all patients underwent a total thyroidectomy with various forms of lymph node dissections. All were treated post-surgically with radio-iodine (131I) and all patients received levothyroxine in suppressive doses. The complication rate was low (laryngeal nerve injury in only 3 cases and no permanent hypoparathyroidism) and after a follow-up period of 26 years all patients are alive and without disease. In the case of DTC in children and adolescents, a total thyroidectomy with an appropriate lymph node dissection is the best surgical management. Besides the rather high incidence of local and distant recurrence, particularly in this age group, the detection and treatment of the metastases with radio-iodine are significantly facilitated by this surgical procedure. Additionally it allows the use of serum thyroglobulin as a reliable indicator of recurrence. To prevent high complication rates, surgical treatment should be performed in centers with skilled and experienced endocrine surgeons.     

Thyroid carcinoma in children and adolescents - review of six cases

OBJECTIVE: Childhood thyroid carcinoma is a rare entity whose management is controversial. The objective of the present study was to evaluate the characteristics of these patients in terms of diagnosis and evolution. PATIENT AND METHODS: The evolution of six patients with thyroid cancer, followed at a Pediatric Endocrinology Unit during the past 17 years, was retrospectively reviewed. RESULTS: Six female patients with age ranging from 4.5 to 12 years were studied. In all 6 cases, thyroid nodules were present on the initial evaluation. Ultrasonography and 131I scintigraphy showed solid and cold nodules in four patients. Histologic findings indicated four papillary and two follicular carcinomas. All patients were submitted to total thyroidectomy; four were subsequently submitted to radiodine therapy due to the presence metastases and/or residual thyroid tissue. CONCLUSION: Our findings support the notion that children and adolescents with thyroid carcinoma have a positive prognosis; no cases of death occurred after 17 years of follow-up. Our data are in agreement with the literature, which describes low mortality rates for these cases.     

Differentiated thyroid carcinomas in childhood: clinicopathologic results of 26 patients

Epithelial solid tumors which are rare in childhood are responsible for about 9% of all childhood cancers. However, differentiated thyroid carcinomas (DTCs) are the most common of the endocrine neoplasia (0.5%-3%) in all childhood malignancies. Pediatric thyroid cancers have some clinicopathological differences from adult thyroid cancers. This analysis investigates the clinical behavior and pathological characteristics of childhood thyroid cancers, with treatment options and outcomes. A total of 26 patients who had been diagnosed as having differentiated thyroid cancer when they were younger than 18 years old, and who took radioiodine ablation treatment, were included in this analysis. The incidence of multifocality, capsule invasion and lymph node metastasis were calculated as 11.5%, 42.3% and 53.8%, respectively. At the 6th month, an absence of I-131 uptake in the neck, with a serum thyroglobulin (Tg) level < 1 ng/mL in the T4 off state, was accepted as the criterion for ablation of thyroid remnant. The mean follow-up period was 20.4 months (range 6 months-5 years). As a result, 19 patients were ablated with a single dose of I-131 (2-4 GBq). A total of 6 patients took a second dose of radioiodine treatment for lymph node or distant metastases. One of these patients was 6 years old and had recently received ablation. He had diffuse lung metastasis, which was detected on the 6th day post ablation with whole body scintigraphy, and he is now under follow-up. Successful surgery and an effective radioiodine ablation have a crucial role in good outcomes of childhood DTCs.     

Papillary thyroid carcinoma does not have standard course in children

Background and purpose  

Papillary thyroid carcinoma has a favorable outcome in children. Recent experience with young children cases with early recurrences, after the total thyroidectomy and excision of palpable lymph nodes, in contrast to usual course of disease in adolescent cases, prompted us to review our experience on papillary carcinoma surgery.     

Differentiated Follicle-Derived Thyroid Carcinoma in Children

ABSTRACT. Fifteen patients, 11 females and 4 males, aged 4–16 years with follicle-derived differentiated thyroid carcinoma treated at the Helsinki University Central Hospital during 1953 through 1984 are reported. Histologically 13 carcinomata were papillary, 1 follicular and 1 was suspected to be follicular carcinoma (atypic adenoma). Eleven (73%) had cervical lymphnode metastases and 4 (25%) pulmonary metastases as well. All patients were initially operated on; total thyroidectomy was performed in 11 and subtotal in 4 patients. In 5 patients there was invasion into the thyroid capsule, perithyroid tissues and blood vessels; 4 patients with pulmonary metastases belonged to this group. Postoperatively 5 patients received radioactive iodine, 4 patients external irradiation to the neck and 6 were given both types of radiation. Pulmonary metastases were treated with radioactive iodine. The patients have been given suppressive doses of thyroxine. The follow-up ranged from 3.5 to 33 years. One patient with extensive pulmonary metastases died 6 years after the initial treatment, all others are still alive. Twelve patients have been followed for 9 to 33 years, in 10 serum thyroglobulin was determined. Tg was undetectable in 9 patients when measured during thyroxin therapy; in 1 patient followed for 33 years, the dose was not suppressive, and there were no signs of disease and Tg in the normal range. In 2 patients Tg could not be determined but they had no signs of disease 18 and 22 years after initial treatment. It is, therefore, presumed that these patients, forming 80% of the material, are cured. Two patients followed for 3.5 years are still under treatment. Differentiated thyroid carcinoma in children should be treated by adequate surgery and postoperative therapy with radioactive iodine.