Cai HJ, Wang H, Cao N, Huang B, Kong FL, Lu LR, Huang YY, Wang W. Calcitonin-negative neuroendocrine tumor of the thyroid with metastasis to liver-rare presentation of an unusual tumor: A case report and review of literature. World J Clin Cases 2020; 8(1): 179-187 [PMID: 31970185 DOI: 10.12998/wjcc.v8.i1.179]
Corresponding Author of This Article
Wei Wang, MA, Chief Physician, Department of Ultrasound, Affiliated Hangzhou First people’s Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, No. 261, Huansha Road, Shangcheng District, Hangzhou 310006, Zhejiang Province, China. wangwei8328003@163.com
Research Domain of This Article
Radiology, Nuclear Medicine & Medical Imaging
Article-Type of This Article
Case Report
Open-Access Policy of This Article
This article is an open-access article which was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/
World J Clin Cases. Jan 6, 2020; 8(1): 179-187 Published online Jan 6, 2020. doi: 10.12998/wjcc.v8.i1.179
Calcitonin-negative neuroendocrine tumor of the thyroid with metastasis to liver-rare presentation of an unusual tumor: A case report and review of literature
Huai-Jie Cai, Han Wang, Nan Cao, Bin Huang, Fan-Lei Kong, Li-Ren Lu, Ya-Yuan Huang, Wei Wang
Huai-Jie Cai, Han Wang, Nan Cao, Bin Huang, The Fourth Clinical Medicine College, Zhejiang Chinese Medical University, Hangzhou 310053, Zhejiang Province, China
Fan-Lei Kong, Li-Ren Lu, Ya-Yuan Huang, Wei Wang, Department of Ultrasound, Affiliated Hangzhou First People’s Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou 310006, Zhejiang Province, China
Author contributions: Cai HJ participated in the design of the report, analyzed the data, and wrote the paper; Kong FL, Lu LR, and Huang YY collected the medical imaging materials; Wang H, Cao N, Huang B, and Wang W designed the report and performed the preliminary revision of the article.
Informed consent statement: Consent was obtained from the patient for publication of this report and any accompanying images.
Conflict-of-interest statement: The authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest.
CARE Checklist (2016) statement: The manuscript was prepared and revised according to the CARE Checklist (2016).
Open-Access: This article is an open-access article which was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Corresponding author: Wei Wang, MA, Chief Physician, Department of Ultrasound, Affiliated Hangzhou First people’s Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, No. 261, Huansha Road, Shangcheng District, Hangzhou 310006, Zhejiang Province, China. wangwei8328003@163.com
Received: October 15, 2019 Peer-review started: October 15, 2019 First decision: November 13, 2019 Revised: November 22, 2019 Accepted: November 30, 2019 Article in press: November 30, 2019 Published online: January 6, 2020 Processing time: 83 Days and 12.7 Hours
Abstract
BACKGROUND
Neuroendocrine tumors mainly occur in the stomach, intestine, pancreas, and lung and are rarely detected in the thyroid. Thyroid neuroendocrine tumors, designated medullary thyroid carcinoma, generally present with elevated calcitonin. Calcitonin-negative neuroendocrine tumors of the thyroid are extremely rare.
CASE SUMMARY
Here, we present a case report of a 56-year-old female patient with a neck pain complaint. Total thyroidectomy was conducted after comprehensive evaluation, and diagnosis was confirmed as calcitonin-negative neuroendocrine tumor of the thyroid. Two months later, liver metastasis was detected, and transcatheter arterial chemoembolization was subsequently performed to control growth. However, the curative effect was unsatisfactory and multiple intrahepatic metastases occurred after 3 mo.
CONCLUSION
Owing to the rarity of this disease, no clear guidelines are available for treatment. In addition to reporting this rare case, we have reviewed and summarized associated medical literature with an aim to provide a comprehensive reference platform for subsequent research.
Core tip: Calcitonin-negative neuroendocrine tumor of the thyroid is an extremely rare disorder, with past literature mostly documenting case reports. Medical imaging has revealed no specific manifestations, and current diagnosis mainly depends on pathological biopsy findings. The prognosis of thyroid neuroendocrine tumors is poorer than that of other thyroid tumors. Transcatheter arterial chemoembolization is not effective in cases of liver metastasis, and no improved treatments have been developed to date. This article provides a complete introduction of this case report with an aim to provide a meaningful reference for future research and trials.
