Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

Tumor size measured by preoperative ultrasonography and postoperative pathologic examination in papillary thyroid carcinoma: relative differences according to size, calcification and coexisting thyroiditis

  • Head and Neck
  • Published:
European Archives of Oto-Rhino-Laryngology Aims and scope Submit manuscript

A Letter to the Editor to this article was published on 02 July 2015

Abstract

Ultrasonography (US) is a useful diagnostic modality for evaluation of the size and features of thyroid nodules. Tumor size is a key indicator of the surgical extent of thyroid cancer. We evaluated the difference in tumor sizes measured by preoperative US and postoperative pathologic examination in papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC). We reviewed the medical records of 172 consecutive patients, who underwent thyroidectomy for PTC treatment. We compared tumor size, as measured by preoperative US, with that in postoperative specimens. And we analyzed a number of factors potentially influencing the size measurement, including cancer size, calcification and coexisting thyroiditis. The mean size of the tumor measured by preoperative US was 11.4, and 10.2 mm by postoperative pathologic examination. The mean percentage difference (US-pathology/US) of tumor sizes measured by preoperative US and postoperative pathologic examination was 9.9 ± 19.3 %, which was statistically significant (p < 0.001). When the effect of tumor size (≤10.0 vs. 10.1–20.0 vs. >20.0 mm) and the presence of calcification or coexisting thyroiditis on the tumor size discrepancy between the two measurements was analyzed, the mean percentage differences according to tumor size (9.1 vs. 11.2 % vs. 9.8 %, p = 0.842), calcification (9.2 vs. 10.2 %, p = 0.756) and coexisting thyroiditis (17.6 vs. 9.5 %, p = 0.223) did not show statistical significance. Tumor sizes measured in postoperative pathology were ~90 % of those measured by preoperative US in PTC; this was not affected by tumor size, the presence of calcification or coexisting thyroiditis. When the surgical extent of PTC treatment according to tumor size measured by US is determined, the relative difference between tumor sizes measured by preoperative US and postoperative pathologic examination should be considered.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. Miskin M, Rosen IB, Walfish PG (1975) Ultrasonography of the thyroid gland. Radiol Clin North Am 13:479–492

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  2. Ramsay I, Meire H (1975) Ultrasonics in the diagnosis of thyroid disease. Clin Radiol 26:191–197

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  3. Cooper DS, Doherty GM, Haugen BR et al (2009) Revised American Thyroid Association management guidelines for patients with thyroid nodules and differentiated thyroid cancer. Thyroid 19:1167–1214

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  4. Deveci MS, Deveci G, LiVolsi VA et al (2007) Concordance between thyroid nodule sizes measured by ultrasound and gross pathology examination: effect on patient management. Diagn Cytopathol 35:579–583

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  5. Altman DG, Bland JM (1983) Measurement in medicine: the analysis of method comparison studies. Statistician 32:307–317

    Article  Google Scholar 

  6. Bland JM, Altman DG (2003) Applying the right statistics: analyses of measurement studies. Ultrasound Obstet Gynecol 22:85–93

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  7. Marqusee E, Benson CB, Frates MC et al (2000) Usefulness of ultrasonography in the management of thyroid nodular disease. Ann Intern Med 133:696–700

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  8. Gallo M, Pesenti M, Valcavi R (2003) Ultrasound thyroid nodule measurement: the “gold standard” and its limitations in clinical decision making. Endocr Pract 9:194–199

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  9. Hegedüs L (1990) Thyroid size determined by ultrasound. Influence of physiological factors and non-thyroidal disease. Dan Med Bull 37:249–263

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  10. Knudsen N, Bols B, Bülow I et al (1999) Validation of ultrasonography of the thyroid gland for epidemiological purposes. Thyroid 9:1069–1074

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  11. Baloch ZW, LiVolsi VA (1999) Post fine-needle aspiration histologic alterations of thyroid revisited. Am J Clin Pathol 112:311–316

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  12. Brauer VF, Eder P, Miehle K et al (2005) Interobserver variation for ultrasound determination of thyroid nodule volumes. Thyroid 15:1169–1175

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  13. Park CS, Kim SH, Jung SL et al (2010) Observer variability in the sonographic evaluation of thyroid nodules. J Clin Ultrasound 38:287–293

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  14. Finlayson CA, MacDermott TA (2000) Ultrasound can estimate the pathologic size of infiltrating ductal carcinoma. Arch Surg 135:158–159

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgments

This research was supported by Basic Science Research Program through the National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF) funded by the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology (No. 2012R1A1A2005393, 2013R1A2A2A01015281), and a grant from the National R&D program for Cancer Control, Ministry for Health, Welfare, and Family Affairs, Republic of Korea (0720560).

Conflict of interest

None.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Cancer Research Institute, Research Institute for Medical Sciences, Chungnam National University School of Medicine, 640 Daesa-Dong, Chung-Gu, Daejeon, 301-721, South Korea

    Young Hoon Yoon, Ki Ryun Kwon, Seo Young Kwak, Kyeung A. Ryu & Bon Seok Koo

  2. Department of Radiology, Chungnam National University College of Medicine, Daejeon, Korea

    Bobae Choi

  3. Department of Pathology, Chungnam National University College of Medicine, Daejeon, Korea

    Jin-Man Kim

Authors
  1. Young Hoon Yoon
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Ki Ryun Kwon
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Seo Young Kwak
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Kyeung A. Ryu
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. Bobae Choi
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  6. Jin-Man Kim
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  7. Bon Seok Koo
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Bon Seok Koo.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Yoon, Y.H., Kwon, K.R., Kwak, S.Y. et al. Tumor size measured by preoperative ultrasonography and postoperative pathologic examination in papillary thyroid carcinoma: relative differences according to size, calcification and coexisting thyroiditis. Eur Arch Otorhinolaryngol 271, 1235–1239 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00405-013-2638-2

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00405-013-2638-2

Keywords

Search

Navigation