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Thyroid Cancer in Children and Adolescents

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Thyroid Cancer

Abstract

Thyroid cancer is the most common endocrine tumor in children. It comprises 0.5–1.5% of childhood tumors and is the most common malignant tumor of the head and neck in young people (1,2). Although it is more common in adults than in children, approx 10% of all cases are diagnosed before age 21 (3). The histology of the disease in childhood is like it is in adults, but the disease’s presentation and behavior is significantly different when it occurs in children and adolescents. For example, even though thyroid cancer is relatively uncommon in children and adolescents, a mass identified in the thyroid before age 21 is much more likely to be malignant than when the same finding occurs in an older patient (4). The disease is more often advanced at diagnosis with local and even distant metastasis, and it subsequently continues to behave more aggressively with more frequent recurrence (5,6). In adults, especially older patients, this aggressive behavior would be accompanied by a poor longterm prognosis. However, in general, despite its aggressive behavior, thyroid cancer in children usually has an excellent prognosis when appropriately treated.

The opinions and assertions contained herein are the private view of the author and are not to be construed as official or as reflecting the opinions of the Uniformed University of the Health Sciences or the Department of Defense.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Pediatrics, Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, Bethesda, MD

    Merrily Poth MD (Professor)

  2. Division of Pediatric Endocrinology, Walter Reed Army Medical Center, Washington, DC

    Merrily Poth MD (Professor)

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  1. Merrily Poth MD
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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Washington Hospital Center, Washington, DC

    Leonard Wartofsky MD, MPH, MACP  & Douglas Van Nostrand MD, FACP, FACNP  & 

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Poth, M. (2006). Thyroid Cancer in Children and Adolescents. In: Wartofsky, L., Van Nostrand, D. (eds) Thyroid Cancer. Humana Press. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-59259-995-0_10

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-59259-995-0_10

  • Publisher Name: Humana Press

  • Print ISBN: 978-1-58829-462-3

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