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Review
. 2011 Feb 9:2011:bcr1120103536.
doi: 10.1136/bcr.11.2010.3536.

Hurthle cell carcinoma of the thyroid

Mark Anthony S Sandoval  1 , Elizabeth Paz-Pacheco
Affiliations
Review

Hurthle cell carcinoma of the thyroid

Mark Anthony S Sandoval et al. BMJ Case Rep. .

Abstract

A 63-year-old man consulted for a non-toxic thyroid nodule of 2 years' duration. Fine needle aspiration revealed cell findings consistent with papillary thyroid carcinoma. He eventually underwent total thyroidectomy. Microscopic examination revealed histologic features of Hurthle cell carcinoma of the thyroid. He received radioactive iodine therapy and suppressive levothyroxine treatment. Post-therapy whole body iodine-131 scan revealed thyroid tissue remnants limited to the anterior neck. Four months after radioactive iodine therapy, thyroglobulin level is low and the patient remains to have no evidence of disease.

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Conflict of interest statement

Competing interests None.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Fine needle aspiration biopsy showing cells with nuclei that were large, elongated, had grooves and intranuclear inclusions. These are findings consistent with papillary thyroid carcinoma.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Photomicrograph showing the polygonal tumour cells with abundant eosinophilic granular cytoplasm (×400 magnification).
Figure 3
Figure 3
Photomicrograph showing the eosinophilic granular cytoplasm of individual cells. Note the cherry pink appearance of the nucleoli (×1000 magnification).
Figure 4
Figure 4
Photomicrograph showing on the right the presence of tumour cells within a vein, indicative of vascular invasion (×40 magnification).
Figure 5
Figure 5
Photomicrograph showing capsular invasion by the tumour on the left portion (×40 magnification).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

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Supplementary concepts