Skip to main content

Liver Metastases in Thyroid Cancer

  • Chapter
  • First Online:
Noncolorectal, Nonneuroendocrine Liver Metastases

Abstract

Liver metastases from well-differentiated thyroid cancer (WDTC) are rare, with a reported frequency of less than 1 %. Despite this, in the treatment of liver metastases in general, recently the benefit-risk ratio has dramatically improved toward a lower risk for patients with liver metastases when treated by minimal invasive locoregional liver-directed treatments. Although the various thyroid cancer disease entities (papillary, follicular, medullary, and Hürthle cell thyroid cancer) have different biological characteristics, thyroid cancer liver metastases can thus increasingly be considered for curative or palliative treatment. Without doubts, in the following decade the ongoing development of liver-directed therapies will benefit the outcome of patients with liver metastases from any organ and thus also for patients with liver metastases in thyroid carcinoma.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

eBook
USD 16.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD 159.00
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info
Hardcover Book
USD 109.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

References

  1. Salvatori M, Perotti G, Rufini V et al (2004) Solitary liver metastasis from Hürthle cell thyroid cancer: a case report and review of the literature. J Endocrinol Investig 27:52–56

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  2. Song HJ, Xue YL, Xu YH et al (2011) Rare metastases of differentiated thyroid carcinoma: pictorial review. Endocr Relat Cancer 18:165–174

    Article  Google Scholar 

  3. Lee J, Soh EY (2010) Differentiated thyroid carcinoma presenting with distant metastasis at initial diagnosis, clinical outcomes and prognostic factors. Ann Surg 251:114–119

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  4. Machens A, Dralle H (2013) Prognostic impact of N staging in 715 medullary thyroid cancer patients: proposal for a revised staging system. Ann Surg 257:323–329

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  5. Pacini F, Castagna MG, Brilli L, Pentheroudakis G (2010) Thyroid cancer: ESMO Clinical Practice Guidelines for diagnosis, treatment and follow-up, on behalf of the ESMO Guidelines Working Group. Ann Oncol 21:v214–v219

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  6. IKNL; Dutch thyroid cancer guidelines (Richtlijn Schildkliercarcinoom) conceptversion 3.0: 2014. http://www.oncoline.nl/schildkliercarcinoom

  7. Dralle H, Musholt TJ, Schabram J et al (2013) German Association of Endocrine Surgeons practice guideline for the surgical management of malignant thyroid tumors. Langenbecks Arch Surg 398:347–375

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  8. Guidelines for the management of thyroid cancer (2007) 2nd edn. British Thyroid Association, Royal College of Physicians. www.british-thyroid-association.org

  9. Cooper DS, Doherty GM, Bryan R et al (2013) Revised American Thyroid Association management guidelines for patients with thyroid nodules and differentiated thyroid cancer. Thyroid 19:1167–1214

    Article  Google Scholar 

  10. Lerch H, Schober O, Kuwert T, Saur HB (1997) Survival of differentiated thyroid carcinoma studied in 500 patients. J Clin Oncol 15:2067–2075

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  11. Davies L, Welch HG (2006) Increasing incidence of thyroid cancer in the United States 1973–2002. JAMA 295:2164–2167

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  12. Enyioha C, Roman SA, Sosa JA (2013) Central lymph node dissection in patients with papillary thyroid cancer: a population level analysis of 14,257 cases. Am J Surg 205:655–661

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  13. Kruijff S, Petersen JF, Chen P et al (2014) Patterns of structural recurrence in papillary thyroid cancer. World J Surg 38:653–659

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  14. Links TP, van Tol KM, Jager PL et al (2005) Life expectancy in differentiated thyroid cancer: a novel approach to survival analysis. Endocr Relat Cancer 12:273–280

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  15. Kruijff S, Aniss AM, Chen P et al (2013) Decreasing the dose of radioiodine for remnant ablation does not increase structural recurrence rates in papillary thyroid carcinoma. Surgery 154:1337–1344; discussion 1344–5

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  16. Mallick U, Harmer C, Hackshaw A et al (2012) Iodine or not for low-risk differentiated thyroid cancer: the next UK National Cancer Research Network randomised trial following HiLo. Clin Oncol (R Coll Radiol) 24:159–161

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  17. Aggarwal V, Bhargav PR, Mishra A et al (2007) Clinico-pathological characteristics and long-term outcome in patients with distant metastases from differentiated thyroid carcinoma. World J Surg 31:246–247

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  18. Mazzaferri EL, Jhiang SM (1994) Long-term impact of initial surgical and medical therapy on papillary and follicular thyroid cancer. Am J Med 97:418–428

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  19. Goffredo P, Sosa JA, Roman SA (2013) Differentiated thyroid cancer presenting with distant metastases: a population analysis over two decades. World J Surg 37:1599–1605

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  20. Elisei R, Molinaro E et al (2010) Are the clinical and pathological features of differentiated thyroid carcinoma really changed over the last 35 years? Study on 4187 patients from a single Italian institution to answer this question. J Clin Endocrinol Metab 95:1516–1527

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  21. Ruegemer JJ, Hay ID, Bergstralh EJ et al (1988) Distant metastases in differentiated 9487 thyroid carcinoma: a multivariate analysis of prognostic variables. J Clin Endocrinol Metab 67:501–508

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  22. Shaha AR, Shah JP, Loree TR (1997) Differentiated thyroid cancer presenting initially with distant metastasis. Am J Surg 174:474–476

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  23. Haq M, Harmer C (2005) Differentiated thyroid carcinoma with distant metastases at presentation: prognostic factors and outcome. Clin Endocrinol 63:87–93

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  24. Durante C, Haddy N, Baudin E et al (2006) Long term outcome of 444 patients with distant metastases from papillary and follicular thyroid carcinoma: benefits and limits of radioiodine therapy. J Clin Endocrinol Metab 91:2892–2899

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  25. Nixon IJ, Whitcher MW, Palmer FL et al (2012) The impact of distant metastases at presentation on prognosis in patients with differentiated carcinoma of the thyroid gland. Thyroid 22:884–889

    Article  PubMed Central  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  26. Lang BH, Wong KP, Cheung CJ (2013) Evaluating the prognostic factors associated with cancer-specific survival of differentiated thyroid carcinoma presenting with distant metastasis. Ann Surg Oncol 20:1329–1335

    Article  PubMed Central  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  27. Schlumberger M, Tubiana M, De Vathaire F et al (1986) Long-term results of treatment of 283 patients with lung and bone metastases from differentiated thyroid carcinoma. J Clin Endocrinol Metab 63:960–967

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  28. Baudain E, Schlumberger M (2007) New therapeutic approaches for metastatic thyroid carcinoma. Lancet Oncol 8:148–156

    Article  Google Scholar 

  29. Schlumberger M, Challeton C, De Vathaire F et al (1996) Radioactive iodine treatment and external radiotherapy for lung and bone metastases from thyroid carcinoma. J Nucl Med 37:598–605

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  30. Protopapas AD, Nicholson AG, Vini L, Harmer CL, Goldstraw P (2001) Thoracic metastasectomy in thyroid malignancies. Ann Thorac Surg 72:1906–1908

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  31. Stojadinovic A, Shoup M, Ghossein RA et al (2002) The role of operations for distantly metastatic well-differentiated thyroid carcinoma. Surgery 131:636–643

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  32. Niederle B, Roka R, Schemper M et al (1986) Surgical treatment of distant metastases in differentiated thyroid cancer: indications and results. Surgery 100:1088–1096

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  33. Proye CA, Dromer DH, Carnaille BM et al (1992) Is it still worthwhile to treat bone metastases from differentiated thyroid carcinoma with radioactive iodine? World J Surg 16:640–645; discussion 645–6

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  34. Zettenig G, Fueger BJ, Passler C et al (2002) Long-term follow-up of patients with bone metastases from differentiated thyroid carcinoma – surgery or conventional therapy? Clin Endocrinol 56:377–382

    Article  Google Scholar 

  35. Brose MS, Nutting CM, Elisei R et al (2014) Sorafenib in radioacrive iodine refractory locally advanced or metastatic differentiated thyroid cancer: A randomized double blind phase III trial. Lancet 384:319–328

    Google Scholar 

  36. Hürthle K (1894) Beiträge zur Kenntnis des Sekretionsvorganges in der Schilddrüse. Arch Ges Physiol 56:1–44

    Article  Google Scholar 

  37. Montone KT, Baloch ZW, LiVolsi VA (2008) The thyroid Hürthle (oncocytic) cell and its associated pathologic conditions: a surgical pathology and cytopathology review. Arch Pathol Lab Med 132:1241–1250

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  38. DeLellis RA, Lloyd RV, Heitz PU, Eng C (2004) WHO classification of tumours, pathology and genetics of tumours of endocrine organs. IARC, Lyon, pp 73–76

    Google Scholar 

  39. Sugino K, Kameyama K, Ito K (2013) Does Hürthle cell carcinoma of the thyroid have a poorer prognosis than ordinary follicular thyroid carcinoma? Ann Surg Oncol 20:2944–2950

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  40. Kushchayeva Y, Duh QY, Kebebew E, Clark OH (2004) Prognostic indications for Hürthle cell cancer. World J Surg 28:1266–1270

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  41. Pacini F, Castagna MG, Cipri C, Schlumberger M (2010) Medullary thyroid carcinoma, overview. Clin Oncol 22:475–485

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  42. de Groot JW, Links TP, Sluiter WJ et al (2007) Loco-regional control in patients with palpable medullary thyroid cancer: results of standardized compartment-oriented surgery. Head Neck 29:857–863

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  43. de Groot JW, Plukker JT, Wolffenbuttel BH et al (2006) Determinants of life expectancy in medullary thyroid cancer: age does not matter. J Clin Endocrinol 65:729–736

    Article  Google Scholar 

  44. Van Heerden JA, Grant CS, Gharib H et al (1990) Long-term course of patients with persistent hypercalcitoninemia after apparent curative primary surgery for medullary thyroid carcinoma. Ann Surg 212:395–400

    Article  PubMed Central  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  45. Wells SA Jr, Robinson BG, Gagel RF et al (2012) Vandetanib in patients with locally advanced or metastatic medullary thyroid cancer: a randomized, double-blind phase III trial. J Clin Oncol 30:134–141

    Article  CAS  PubMed Central  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  46. Lorenz K, Brauckhoff M, Behrmann C et al (2005) Selective arterial chemo embolization for hepatic metastases from medullary thyroid carcinoma. Surgery 138:986–993

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  47. Fromigue J, de Baere T, Baudin E et al (2006) Chemoembolization for liver metastases from medullary thyroid carcinoma. J Clin Endocrinol Metab 91:2496–2499

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  48. Lim SM, Shin SJ, Chung WY et al (2012) Treatment outcome of patients with anaplastic thyroid cancer: a single center experience. Yonsei Med J 53:352–357

    Article  PubMed Central  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  49. Smallridge RC (2012) Approach to the patient with anaplastic thyroid carcinoma. J Clin Endocrinol Metab 97:2566–2572

    Article  CAS  PubMed Central  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  50. Besic N, Gazic B (2013) Sites of metastases of anaplastic thyroid carcinoma: autopsy findings in 45 cases from a single institution. Thyroid 23:709–713

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  51. Granata R, Locati L, Licitra L (2013) Therapeutic strategies in the management of patients with metastatic anaplastic thyroid cancer: review of the current literature. Curr Opin Oncol 25:224–228

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  52. de Jong KP (2007) Review article: multimodality treatment of liver metastases increases suitability for surgical treatment. Aliment Pharmacol Ther 26:161–169

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  53. de Jong KP, Wertenbroek MW (2011) Liver resection combined with local ablation: where are the limits? Dig Surg 28:127–133

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  54. de Jong KP (2011) What is new in liver surgery? Focus on thermoablation and the relevance of the inflammatory response. Minerva Chir 66:561–572

    Google Scholar 

  55. van Laarhoven S, van Baren R, Tamminga RYJ, de Jong KP (2012) Radiofrequency ablation in the treatment of liver tumors in children. J Pediatr Surg 47:e7–e12

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  56. Agriantonis DJ, Hall L, Wilson MA (2009) Utility of SPECT/CT as an adjunct to planar whole body I-131 imaging. Liver metastasis from papillary thyroid cancer. Clin Nucl Med 34:247–248

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  57. VandenBusche CJ, Cocke CD, Kay LQ (2011) Fine needle aspiration of metastatic papillary thyroid carcinoma found in the liver. Diagn Cytopathol 41:418–421

    Article  Google Scholar 

  58. Mosci C, Mc Dougall IR, Jeffrey RB, Iagaru A (2012) 18F-FDG PET/CT demonstration of a liver metastasis in a patient with papillary thyroid cancer. Clin Nucl Med 37:234–236

    Article  Google Scholar 

  59. Brown AP, Greening WP, McCready VR, Shaw HJ, Harmer CL (1984) Radioiodine treatment of metastatic thyroid carcinoma: the Royal Marsden Hospital experience. Br J Radiol 57:323–327

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  60. Guglielmi R, Pacella CM, Dottorini ME et al (1999) Severe thyrotoxicosis due to hyperfunctioning liver metastasis from follicular carcinoma: treatment with I and interstitial laser ablation. Thyroid 9:173–177

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  61. Kondo T, Katoh R, Omata K et al (2000) Incidentally detected liver metastasis of well differentiated follicular carcinoma of the thyroid, mimicking ectopic thyroid. Pathol Int 50:509–513

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  62. Kelessis NG, Prassis PE, Dimitra DV et al (2005) Unusual metastatic spread of follicular carcinoma: report of a case. Surg Today 35:300–303

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  63. Kouso H, Ikegami T, Ezaki T et al (2005) Liver metastasis from thyroid carcinoma 32 years after resection of the primary tumor: report of a case. Surg Today 35:480–482

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  64. Mackie GC, Shulkin BL (2005) Amiodarone-induced hyperthyroidism in a patient with functioning papillary carcinoma of the thyroid and extensive hepatic metastases. Thyroid 15:1337–1340

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  65. Oreel MA, Tiel-van Buul MMC, de Bruin PC, Koelemij R, Verzijlbergen JF (2006) Hürthle cell carcinoma with a giant cystic liver metastasis imaged with 18F-labeled fluorodeoxyglucose-positron emission tomography. Thyroid 16:195–196

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  66. Zhang H, Zeng L, Liang C et al (2012) Successful treatment of Hürthle cell thyroid carcinoma with lung and liver metastasis using docetaxel and cisplatin. Jpn J Clin Oncol 42:1086–1090

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  67. Siperstein AE, Rogers SJ, Hansen PD, Gitomirsky A (1997) Laparoscopic thermal ablation of hepatic neuroendocrine tumor metastases. Surgery 122:1147–1154

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  68. Curley SA, Izzo F, Delrio P et al (1999) Radio frequency ablation of unresectable primary and metastatic hepatic malignancies: results in 123 patients. Ann Surg 230:1–8

    Article  CAS  PubMed Central  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  69. Machens A, Behrmann C, Dralle H (2002) Chemoembolization of liver metastases from medullary thyroid carcinoma. Ann Intern Med 132:596–597

    Article  Google Scholar 

  70. Siperstein AE, Berber (2001) Cryoablation, percutaneous alcohol injection, and radiofrequency ablation for treatment of neuroendocrine liver metastases. World J Surg 25:693–696

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  71. El Rassi ZS, Ferdinand L, Mohsine RM et al (2002) Primary and secondary liver endocrine tumors: clinical presentation, surgical approach and outcome. Hepatogastroenterology 49:1340–1346

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  72. Elvin A, Skogseid B, Hellman P (2005) Radiofrequency ablation of neuroendocrine liver metastases. Abdom Imaging 30:427–434

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  73. Iftikhar A, Johns W, Gupta SM (2006) Visualization of hepatic metastases of medullary thyroid carcinoma on Tc-99m MDP bone scintigraphy. Clin Nucl Med 31:611–613

    Article  Google Scholar 

  74. Wertenbroek MWJLAE, Links TP, Prins TR et al (2008) Radiofrequency ablation of hepatic metastases from thyroid carcinoma. Thyroid 18:1105–1110

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  75. Imperiale A, Greget M, Chabrier G et al (2010) Solitary hepatic metastasis from medullary thyroid carcinoma mimicking atypical hemangioma insights from multimodality diagnostic approach by MRI, F-18 FDG and F-18 FDOPA PET/CT. Clin Nucl Med 35:434–437

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  76. Souncess BD, Schembri GP (2013) 68Ga-dotatate avid medullary thyroid cancer with occult liver metastases. Clin Nucl Med 39:87–90

    Article  Google Scholar 

  77. Waters KM, Syed ZA, Erozan YS, Olson MT (2014) Smoldering medullary thyroid carcinoma liver metastasis 37 years after resection of an organ-confined tumor. Diagn cytopath E pub ahead of print

    Google Scholar 

  78. Rubino C, De VF, Dottorini ME et al (2003) Second primary malignancies in thyroid cancer patients. Br J Cancer 89:1638–1644

    Article  CAS  PubMed Central  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  79. Liu DM, Salem R, Bui JT et al (2005) Angiographic considerations in patients undergoing liver-directed therapy. J Vasc Interv Radiol 16:911–935

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  80. Leung DA, Goin JE, Sickles C et al (2001) Determinants of postembolization syndrome after hepatic chemoembolization. J Vasc Interv Radiol 12:321–326

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  81. Lopez-Penabad L, Chiu AC, Hoff AO et al (2003) Prognostic factors in patients with Hürthle cell neoplasms of the thyroid. Cancer 97:1186–1194

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  82. Mahnken AH, Pareire PL, de Baère T (2013) Interventional oncologic approaches to liver metastases. Radiology 266:407–430

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  83. Hoegerle S, Altehoefer C, Ghanem N et al (2001) 18F-DOPA positron emission tomography for tumour detection in patients with medullary thyroid carcinoma and elevated calcitonin levels. Eur J Nucl Med 28:64–71

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  84. Koopmans KP, de Groot JW, Plukker JT et al (2008) 18F-dihydroxyphenylalanine PET in patients with biochemical evidence of medullary thyroid cancer: relation to tumor differentiation. J Nucl Med 49:524–531

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  85. Luster M, Karges W, Zeich K et al (2010) Clinical value of 18-fluorine-fluorodihydroxyphenylalanine positron emission tomography/computed tomography in the follow-up of medullary thyroid carcinoma. Thyroid 20:527–533

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  86. Kress O, Wagner HJ, Wied M et al (2003) Transarterial chemoembolization of advanced liver metastases of neuroendocrine tumors—a retrospective single center experience. Digestion 68:94–101

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  87. Elias D, Sideris L, Pocard M, Dromain C et al (2004) Intraductal cooling of the main bile ducts during radiofrequency ablation prevents biliary stenosis. J Am Coll Surg 198:717–721

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Schelto Kruijff .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2015 Springer International Publishing Switzerland

About this chapter

Cite this chapter

Kruijff, S., van der Horst-Schrivers, A.N.A., de Jong, K.P. (2015). Liver Metastases in Thyroid Cancer. In: Di Carlo, I. (eds) Noncolorectal, Nonneuroendocrine Liver Metastases. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-09293-5_13

Download citation

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-09293-5_13

  • Published:

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-09292-8

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-09293-5

  • eBook Packages: MedicineMedicine (R0)

Publish with us

Policies and ethics