Akademik Veri Yönetim Sistemi
Clinical nuclear medicine, cilt.32, sa.4, ss.279-81, 2007 (SCI-Expanded)
Aims and Background: Papillary microcarcinoma of the thyroid is a specific subgroup of papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC) and account for up to 30% of all PTC. According to the World Health Organization, papillary microcarcinoma of the thyroid (PMC) is defined as a papillary thyroid carcinoma measuring <= 10 mm in the greatest dimension. The relative rate of PMC is increasing in patients with differentiated thyroid carcinoma (DTC) mainly due to more frequent use and improvement of ultrasonography and fine-needle aspiration biopsy, and also more accurate histopathological examination of surgical specimens. The high incidence of PMC found in autopsy Studies (up to 35%) suggests that most of them have a benign behavior. The locoregional recurrence has been reported in up to 20% of PMC patients and several cases of distant metastases have also been described. The 'ideal' therapeutic approach in PMC patients remains a subject of debate among endocrinologists and surgeons. Treatment of PMC in different departments varies from partial thyroidectomy to total thyroidectomy and radioiodine treatment. The main question in this group of patients is "How should PMC patients be treated?" The aim of this study was to investigate retrospectively the frequency and clinical behavior of PMC of the thyroid gland in our department and also to identify the optimal treatment of this group of patients.