RT Journal Article
SR Electronic
T1 The varied presentations of papillary thyroid carcinoma cervical nodal disease: CT and MR findings.
JF American Journal of Neuroradiology
JO Am. J. Neuroradiol.
FD American Society of Neuroradiology
SP 1123
OP 1128
VO 15
IS 6
A1 P M Som
A1 M Brandwein
A1 M Lidov
A1 W Lawson
A1 H F Biller
YR 1994
UL http://www.ajnr.org/content/15/6/1123.abstract
AB PURPOSE To review the varied presentations of metastatic cervical lymph node disease in patients with papillary thyroid carcinoma. METHODS Thirteen cases were retrospectively collected and their clinical, imaging, surgical, and pathologic material was reviewed. In the cases reviewed there was no clinical or imaging evidence of a primary thyroid mass. RESULTS On CT, metastatic nodes can have multiple discrete calcifications, appear as benign cysts or hyperplastic or hypervascular nodes, or have areas of high attenuation which reflect intranodal hemorrhage and/or high concentrations of thyroglobulin. On MR, the nodes can have low to intermediate T1- and high T2-weighted signal intensities or high T1- and T2-weighted signal intensities, the latter reflecting primarily a high thyroglobulin content. CONCLUSION If any of these varied appearances of cervical lymph nodes are identified on CT or MR, especially in a woman between 20 and 40 years of age, the radiologist should suspect the diagnosis of papillary thyroid carcinoma, even in the absence of a thyroid mass.