Possible association of CEA expression with oxyphilic change but not with C-cell hyperplasia in Hashimoto's thyroiditis

Reactive C cell hyperplasia as an incidental finding after thyroidectomy for papillary carcinoma

The biologic and clinical significance of reactive C cell hyperplasia (CCH), adjacent to differentiated thyroid cancers, remains unknown. Our aim was to investigate the presence of CCH in thyroidectomy specimens with papillary thyroid carcinomas (PTC) and discuss its epidemiology and histology. In total, 413 patients were prospectively included in the study (189 benign goiters, 224 PTC). Reactive CCH was observed in 9.8% of PTC cases (32% males, 68% females, mean age 48.3 ± 16.4 years) and usually ipsilateral to the primary tumor (91%). Histologically, CCH was either focal (91%) or diffuse (9%) and almost always (92%) found in the middle or upper thirds of the thyroid lobes. Patients with PTC/CCH were generally younger than patients with benign goiters (0.027). On the other hand, patients with PTC and with PTC/CCH did not differ in terms of age, gender, basal calcitonin levels, primary tumor size, multifocality, extrathyroidal invasion, or lymph node metastasis. Thyroiditis, however, was more frequent in cases with PTC/CCH compared to PTC alone. Reactive CCH is considered a physiological response of the C cells to various stimuli, differentiated thyroid cancer among others. It bears no malignant potential and requires no additional treatment, following thyroidectomy.

Is Hashimoto's thyroiditis a risk factor for medullary thyroid carcinoma? Our experience and a literature review

The etiology of medullary thyroid carcinoma remains unknown. The aim of this study was to determine whether there is a significant association between medullary thyroid carcinoma and Hashimoto's thyroiditis in the histopathologic material of thyroidectomized patients. Retrospective cross-sectional study. In this study, we reviewed the medical records of all patients who underwent total thyroidectomy for different thyroid-related complaints between January 2000 and January 2012 at Jordan University Hospital-Amman, Jordan. To highlight relevant previously published studies addressing this topic, a literature search was conducted for English language studies reporting "medullary thyroid carcinoma" or "C-cell hyperplasia" in patients with Hashimoto's thyroiditis. Of the 863 patients with a mean age of 47.2 ± 12.3 years who underwent total thyroidectomy during the study period, 78 (9.04 %) were diagnosed with Hashimoto's thyroiditis, and 15 (1.74 %) had medullary thyroid carcinoma, 3 (20 %) of whom had coexistent Hashimoto's thyroiditis. A total of 683 (79.1 %) patients had benign thyroid disease, 67 (9.8 %) of whom had Hashimoto's thyroiditis. The difference between these rates was not statistically significant (p = 0.19). When examined by gender, 9 females had medullary thyroid carcinoma, 3 (33.3 %) of whom had coexistent Hashimoto's thyroiditis; by contrast, of 560 females with benign thyroid disease, 62 (11.1 %) had Hashimoto's thyroiditis (p = 0.04). Although this study population represents a small and single-institution experience, our results suggest that there might be an association between Hashimoto's thyroiditis and medullary thyroid carcinoma only in female patients who undergo total thyroidectomy.

Ileal Vanek's Tumor Mimicking Cecal Carcinoma

Inflammatory fibroid polyps or Vanek's tumors are rare benign pseudotumoral lesions with morphological characteristics similar to those of submucosal mesenchymal tumors. They have been described in the gastrointestinal tract, most frequently in the gastric antrum. We present a case of ileal Vanek's tumor associated with a raised carcinoembryonic antigen level and with radiological and endoscopic features mimicking cecal carcinoma.