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Thyroid cancer - papillary carcinoma - Symptom

Alternative Names

Papillary carcinoma of the thyroid

Symptoms:

Thyroid cancer usually begins as a small bump (nodule) in the thyroid gland, which is located at the front of the neck. However, it should be emphasized that most thyroid bumps are harmless and noncancerous (benign).

Signs and tests:

If you have a lump on your thyroid, your doctor will order blood tests and an ultrasound of the thyroid gland.

If the ultrasound shows that the lump is bigger than 1.0 centimeter, a special biopsy called a fine needle aspiration (FNA) will be performed. This test determines if the lump is cancerous or benign (not cancerous).

Thyroid function tests are usually normal in patients with thyroid cancer.

Endocrine glands

Thyroid cancer - CT scan

Thyroid enlargement - scintiscan

Thyroid gland

Reviewed last on: 3/21/2008
Stephen Grund, M.D. Ph.D., Chief of Hematology/Oncology and Director of the George Bray Cancer Center at New Britain General Hospital, New Britain, CT. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network.

References

Larsen PR, Kronberg HM, Schlomo M, et al. Williams Textbook of Endocrinology. 10th ed. St. Louis, MO: WB Saunders; 2003:469-473.

Hemminki K. Familial risks for nonmedullary thyroid cancer. J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 2005; 90(10): 5747-5753.

Kumar V, Abbas AK, Fausto N. Robbins and Cotran Pathologic Basis of Disease. 7th ed. St. Louis, MO: WB Saunders; 2005:1177-1180.

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