Unraveling poorly differentiated and papillary thyroid carcinoma within a multinodular Goitre: A case report and review of literature

Abstract

The multinodular goitre of thyroid gland is not an uncommon disease condition encountered by the head and neck surgeons. Though considered as a benign entity this condition is considered to have a potential risk in the development of thyroid malignancy. The most common malignant tumors associated with multinodular goitre are of follicular cell in origin. Here we report a case of 72-year-old female patient presented with a long-standing multinodular goitre. The patient underwent total thyroidectomy and histopathological examined showed occurrence of a spectrum of follicular cell origin tumors, which were both benign and malignant. The malignant variants were papillary thyroid carcinoma and poorly differentiated carcinoma. The poorly differentiated tumor is defined by Turin consensus diagnostic criteria. The poorly differentiated variant lies in between a differentiated and anaplastic variant, where the tumor still expresses the characteristics of its cell of origin. There are various literature evidence showing synchronous occurrence of different types of thyroid malignancies. The authors would like to conclude that a thyroid nodular lesion of long duration should be managed with utmost care to provide the best available treatment to the patient.