Thyroid cancer incidentally found in radical surgery for laryngeal/hypopharyngeal cancer
Received 18 December 2008; received in revised form 16 March 2009; accepted 8 May 2009.
Abstract
Objectives
To report on four patients with thyroid cancer found in their specimen of laryngectomy for laryngeal/hypopharyngeal cancer.
Study Design
Retrospective case series.
Setting
Patients with laryngeal cancer and hypopharyngeal cancers treated at our institution between 1991 and 2005 were enrolled.
Subjects and Methods
There were 463 patients with laryngeal cancer and 219 patients with hypopharyngeal cancers under retrospective review.
Results
There were 254 patients with laryngeal caner and 130 patients with hypopharyngeal cancer receiving surgery. Thyroid cancer was observed in the resected thyroid gland in two cases of laryngeal cancer and in two cases of hypopharyngeal cancer. They received treatment only for their laryngeal/hypopharyngeal cancers. Two patients died of distant metastases from larynx/hypopharynx cancer within one year. The other two patients are currently alive without disease from either of the two types of cancer.
Conclusions
It is rare to discover an unexpected simultaneous thyroid cancer confirmed postoperatively from thyroid tissue partially removed in laryngectomy. A conservative approach is suggested for such patients.
aInstitute of Biomedical Engineering, College of Medicine and College of Engineering, National Taiwan University, Taipei, Taiwan
bDepartment of Otolaryngology, National Taiwan University Hospital and National Taiwan University College of Medicine, Taipei, Taiwan
cDepartment of Otolaryngology, National Taiwan University Hospital Yun-Lin Branch, Yun-Lin, Taiwan
dDepartment of Nursing, Cardinal Tien College of Healthcare and Management, Sindian City, Taipei, Taiwan
Corresponding author: Shiann-Yann Lee, MD, Department of Otolaryngology, National Taiwan University Hospital, 7, Chung-Shan South Rd., Taipei, Taiwan
No sponsorships or competing interests have been disclosed for this article.
ABSTRACT