Implications of oncocytic change in papillary thyroid cancer

Abstract

SummaryObjective Although the presence of oncocytic change in less than 75% of a tumour is not considered to indicate oncocytic variants of papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC), we frequently observe partial oncocytic change, especially in obese PTC patients. Thus, we sought to investigate the relationship between the presence of oncocytic change of PTC and its prognosis. Design, setting and participants We retrospectively studied 142 patients with PTC who had undergone surgery between 2000 and 2005, and re-evaluated their PTC slides to record the proportion of oncocytic change in 10% increments from 0% to 100%. Major outcome measure We analysed the relationship between the proportion of oncocytic change and clinicopathological prognostic factors. Results Oncocytic change was found in 45Á8% (65/142) of PTC patients. The proportion of patients with oncocytic change was higher in obese patients than in lean patients and showed a significant correlation with the BMI (r = 0Á195, P = 0Á020). The PTC patients with oncocytic change showed a higher recurrence rate than PTC patients without oncocytic change (30Á8% vs 11Á7%, respectively; P = 0Á005). The presence of oncocytic change in PTC patients was associated with a shorter disease-free survival in a Kaplan-Meier analysis after a mean follow-up of 8Á9 years. Conclusion The patients with PTC with oncocytic change presented with a higher recurrence rate and were more likely to be obese. These findings suggest that presence of oncocytic change is a poor prognostic factor in PTC patients, even if the oncocytic change involves less than 75% of a tumour.

The new 4th edition World Health Organization classification for thyroid tumors, Asian perspectives

“…Warthin‐like variant PTC shares histological features with Warthin tumor of salivary gland origin, and the prognosis is similar with that of conventional PTC . Oncocytic variant PTC was reported to have a higher tumor recurrence rate (28% vs 11%) and cause‐specific mortality (17% vs 4%) than conventional PTC, and this was confirmed in a Korean patient cohort (recurrence rates, 30.8% vs 11.7%) by Hong et al …”

“…Warthin-like variant PTC shares histological features with Warthin tumor of salivary gland origin, and the prognosis is similar with that of conventional PTC. 1,56 Oncocytic variant PTC was reported to have a higher tumor recurrence rate (28% vs 11%) and cause-specific mortality (17% vs 4%) than conventional PTC, 151 and this was confirmed in a Korean patient cohort (recurrence rates, 30.8% vs 11.7%) by Hong et al 152 The Warthin-like variant was included in oncocytic variant PTC in the previous WHO classification, and was regarded The PTC variants with fibromatosis/fasciitis-like stroma, spindle cell and clear cells are rare, and the prevalence of such variants was 0.06% (1/1521) for fibromatosis/fasciitislike stroma, 0% for spindle cell and 0.06% (1/1521) for clear cell variant PTC in a Japanese patient cohort reported by Ito et al 153 ( Table 2). They are low-risk PTC similar with conventional PTC, and no definite prognostic information is available.…”

“…172,173 PTC cases with H€ urthle cell change were reported to have higher rates of tumor recurrence (28% vs 11%) and cause-specific mortality (17% vs 4%), 151 and this was confirmed in a Korean patient cohort (recurrence rate, 30.8% vs 11.7%). 152 In the same vein, it was for a long time believed that H€ urthle cell carcinomas do not sufficiently concentrate radioactive iodine, which is not supported by the recent findings. 174…”

Hürthle cell carcinoma: current perspectives

“…Oncocytic follicular cells are also seen in the oncocytic variant of papillary thyroid carcinoma, which is a rare subtype of papillary thyroid carcinoma. Variable biological behaviors have been reported for the oncocytic variant of papillary thyroid carcinoma, which is histologically defined by the presence of oncocytes (at least 75% of the entire tumor) seen along with the classic nuclear features of papillary thyroid carcinoma 2–5…”

Effects of miR-27a upregulation on thyroid cancer cells migration, invasion, and angiogenesis

“…Therefore, early diagnosis and treatment is of great significance to prolong patient survival. The discovery of potential therapeutic target in the basic research is particularly important (Hong et al, 2016). In recent years, it has been shown that miRNAs play important roles in a variety of diseases.…”