Lidia Ionescu, Radu D?nil?, Mihaela Blaj, Mihai Savin, Carmen Vulpoi, Delia Ciobanu and Daniel Timofte
Anaplastic thyroid carcinoma presents as an extremely localy invasive neck mass while metastases in the thyroid are most commonly described as small, indolent, solitary nodules usually originating from kidney, breast, lungs and skin tumors. We report the case of a 74-year old male patient illustrating the difficulties of differential diagnosis between an anaplastic thyroid carcinoma and a thyroid metastasis of a peripheral cholangiocarcinoma in a cirrhotic patient diagnosed and operated for a locally advanced thyroid tumor. The history, clinical and imagistical features strongly pleaded for the diagnosis of anaplastic thyroid carcinoma presumably with liver metastases, also supported by the rapid recurrence following total thyroidectomy. Immunohistochemical tests showed a malignant carcinomatous proliferation with anaplastic prophile. Positive immunochemical staining for cytokeratin AE1/AE3, CK7 and negative CK20, AFP, CD15, CD30, CD5, TTF1 and thyroglobulin directed the possible diagnosis toward a secondary thyroid tumor from a peripheral cholangiocarcinoma. Immunohistochemical tests showed a malignant carcinomatous proliferation with anaplastic prophile. Positive immunochemical staining for cytokeratin AE1/AE3, CK7 and negative CK20, AFP, CD15, CD30, CD5, TTF1 and thyroglobulin directed the possible diagnosis toward a secondary thyroid tumor from a peripheral cholangiocarcinoma. A CT-guided percutaneous hepatic punction biopsy was planned but the patient presented an ischemic stroke with fatal outcome. In conclusion, in spite of surgical treatment the rapid recurrent thyroid cancer either primary or metastatic had a poor prognosis with fatal outcome mainly in the presence liver cirrhosis and cardio-vascular co-morbidities.
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