Papillary carcinoma of the thyroid ≤ 1.0 cm

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Abstract
BACKGROUND Papillary carcinomas of the thyroid that measure ≤ 1.0 cm often are termed incidental or occult tumors. In the current study, the author sought to determine the incidence of such tumors at his institution over a relatively short period. METHODS The author reviewed the results from all patients who underwent thyroid resection over a 65-month period and correlated the findings with clinical and cytologic information. RESULTS During the study period, a total of 720 resections were performed, and 210 papillary carcinomas were identified that were the reason for the excision. The mean size of these tumors decreased from 2.1 cm to 1.7 cm (P = 0.018) over the period of the study, and the percentage of tumors measuring ≤ 1.0 cm increased from 21% to 39% (P = 0.007). The vast majority of these small tumors (73%) were identified by preoperative fine-needle aspiration. During the same period, there were 62 incidental papillary carcinomas, 94% of which measured ≤ 0.5 cm. CONCLUSIONS The size of papillary thyroid carcinomas that were resected at the author's institution decreased significantly, and carcinomas measuring ≤ 1.0 cm increased significantly. Currently, papillary carcinomas that measure between 0.5 cm and 1.0 cm rarely are either occult or incidental findings in the majority of patients. Cancer (Cancer Cytopathol) 2005. © 2005 American Cancer Society.