Abstract
Background The incidence of papillary thyroid cancer is increasing, largely due to an increase in the number of incidentally discovered tumours. A significant number are 10mm or less in size [papillary thyroid microcarcinomas (PTMC)]. There is controversy in the literature regarding optimal management of these tumours. Aim Review our institution's experience with the presentation and management of PTMC. Methods Retrospective analysis of prospectively collected data at the Sydney Head and Neck Cancer Institute from 1987 to 2009. Results The analysis includes 228 PTMC patients with 41 males and 187 females with a median age of 56.1 and 49.3 years, respectively. PTMC were discovered incidentally in 116 (50.9%) patients and non-incidentally in 112 (49.1%) patients. Amongst the non-incidental group, 11.6% patients presented with lateral cervical lymph node involvement. Non-incidental tumours were significantly associated with younger age ( p =0.007), and larger tumours (0.5–10mm) ( p Conclusions PTMC presents equally both incidentally and non-incidentally. PTMC has a variable presentation and treatment should be dictated by the extent of disease.
Published Version
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