S173 – Ectopic Intratracheal Thyroid Cancer

Abstract

Objectives 1) To describe a case of ectopic intratracheal thyroid cancer. 2) To review the literature describing ectopic intratracheal thyroid tissue. Methods Ectopic thyroid tissue is periodically encountered and can sometimes be malignant. The most common locations for ectopic thyroid tissue to be found are the tongue and along the tract of descent of the thyroid gland into the neck. We describe a case of ectopic intratracheal thyroid cancer and review the literature for similar cases. We also discuss possible explanations for this phenomenon. Results A total thyroidectomy with tracheal resection was performed. The patient received postoperative I131 therapy and has no detectable serum thyroglobulin to date. There is a small number of cases that report ectopic thyroid tissue found in the trachea. 3 of these were malignant. Including the current case, 26% of ectopic intratracheal tissue is malignant. Conclusions Ectopic intratracheal thyroid tissue is rare. Since 26% of reported cases have been malignant, we suggest that resection is the appropriate therapy, as opposed to the alternative endoscopic laser debulking.