Objective To analyze the expressions of galectin-3， human bone marrow endothelial cell-1 （HBME-1），cytokeratin （CK）19， and RET in benign and malignant thyroid tumor and to discuss their clinical significances. Methods The clinicopathologic and immunohistochemical staining data of 131 patients with benign and malignant thyroid tumor were analyzed retrospectively， including 45 patients with malignant thyroid tumor， 86 patients with benign thyroidtumor. The expressions of galectin-3， HBME-1， CK19， and RET in the benign and malignant thyroid tumor were detectedby immunohistochemical staining. Results The positive expression rates of the galectin-3， HBME-1， CK19， and RET in the malignant thyroid tumor were 97.8% （44/45）， 88.9% （40/45）， 100% （45/45）， and 71.1% （32/45）， respectively，which in the benign thyroid tumor were 9.3% （8/86）， 12.8% （11/86）， 37.2% （32/86）， and 8.1% （7/86）， respectively， the differences were statistically significant （P＜0.05）. The diagnostic sensitivity， specificity， and accordance rates were 97.8 %， 90.7%， and 93.1% for the galectin-3， respectively；88.9%， 87.2%， and 87.8% for the HBME-1， respec-tively；100%， 62.8%， and 75.6% for the CK19， respectively；71.1%， 91.9%， and 84.7% for the RET， respectively. Conclusions The expression levels of galectin-3， HBME-1， CK19， and RET in malignant thyroid tumor are significantly higher than those in benign thyroid tumor. Galectin-3， HBME-1， CK19， and RET can be important factors for identifying the benign and malignant tumor and their biological behaviors. Galectin-3 has a high reference value in the diagnosis of thyroid carcinoma.
Objective To further strengthen the understanding of the genesis of thyroid tumors through the analysis of thyroid nodules in the clonal origin. Method The related literatures which discussed the clonality of thyroid nodules were reviewed and analyzed. Results About the clonal origin of thyroid nodules， the X chromosome inactivation detection and single gene mutation detection were the most widely chosen one at present. Most of the materials available at present related to X chromosome inactivation proposed that major part of the thyroid nodules were monoclonal and the malignant cells spreaded by means of the inner lymphatic vessel net，whereas polyclonal and monoclonal thyroid nodules coexisted occasionally. Only BRAF mutation was found of certain importance in clonal origin identification in the thyroid nodules. Conclusions Thyroid nodule is prevalent in clinical practice，while the clonality of thyroid nodules especially the thyroid tumor is not clear. And for the time being the commonly used methods to identify the clonal origin of thyroid nodule are X chromosome inactivation and single gene mutation detection. Published results confirm the finding of X chromosome inactivation methods that the majority of thyroid nodules are monoclonally originated.
Objective To study the relations between the expression of estrogen receptor (ER), progesterone receptor (PR) and tumor infiltration and metastasis in thyroid carcinoma. Methods By using immunohistochemical staining (SABC method), the expressions of ER and PR in 100 cases of thyroid carcinomas and 28 cases of benign thyroid lesions were studied. Results The positive rate of ER and PR expressions were 67.0% and 62.0% respectively in thyroid carcinomas, they had correlation with cell differentiation and type of histology but positive expressions did not relate to age and sex. The positive rate of ER and PR in the non-metastasized group was 75.4% and 70.5%, significantly higher than that of the metastasized group in which were 53.8% and 48.7% (Ｐ＜0.05). Conclusion The results suggest that the expressions of ER and PR are related to tumor differentiation and may indicate a poor prognosis.
ObjectiveTo summarize and analyze the clinical characteristics of patients with thyroiditis who would be misdiagnosed with thyroid tumor easily. MethodThe clinical data of 19 patients with thyroiditis who were misdiag-nosed with thyroid tumor in our department from 2009 to 2012 were analyzed retrospectively. ResultsAll of 19 patients underwent surgery, among which 8 cases were diagnosed with chronic lymphocytic thyroiditis after operation, 10 cases diagnosed with subacute thyroiditis, and 1 case diagnosed with suppurative thyroiditis.Different surgery program such as the biopsy or wedge resection was adopted to the subacute thyroiditis and the chronic lymphocytic thyroiditis respec-tively. ConclusionSometimes, it is very difficult to distinguish atypical thyroiditis from thyroid tumor so that we must pay attention to the patients who had nontumorous characteristics in order to decrease the misdiagnosis.
ObjectiveTo summarize and analyze the relevant studies about the tumor suppressor phosphatase and tensin homolog deleted on chromosome ten (PTEN) and thyroid tumor then further elucidate?the possible mechanism of thyroid tumor formation and progression. Mothods Domestic and international literatures investigating the correlation between PTEN and thyroid tumor were retrieved and reviewed. ResultsThe abnormal expression of PTEN protein resulted by the mutation or methylation of PTEN gene may up-regulate the expression of its downstream effectors such as PI3K, mTOR, FAK, etc. This probably correlate with thyroid neoplasia and progression. Conciusions Abnormalites of PTEN and its downstream signal ways may correlate with the initiation and development of thyroid tumors. However, the specific mechanism still remains unclear and need more further researches