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Common Diagnostic Pitfalls in Thyroid Cytopathology pp 121–136Cite as

Follicular Variant of Papillary Thyroid Carcinoma

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Abstract

Although architecturally, it fits into the category of follicular neoplasm, follicular variant of papillary thyroid carcinoma is classified as a subtype of papillary carcinoma because it behaves clinically like papillary carcinoma. The tumor is comprised predominantly of follicles; however, the characteristic nuclear features of classic papillary carcinoma are present. Papillary clusters are notably absent. The most common diagnostic dilemma is mistaking it for either goiter or follicular neoplasm. This is due to the fact that there is an overlapping diagnostic criteria for follicular lesions in general and also the paucity of diagnostic features of PTC in this variant, either because they are poorly developed or present only focally. When the predominant architecture is the presence of syncytial tissue fragments, especially in a background of colloid, the lesion can be misdiagnosed as nodular goiter.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Pathology, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT, USA

    Adebowale J. Adeniran

  2. Department of Pathology, Mount Sinai Health System, New York, NY, USA

    David Chhieng

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  1. Adebowale J. Adeniran
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  2. David Chhieng
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Adeniran, A.J., Chhieng, D. (2016). Follicular Variant of Papillary Thyroid Carcinoma. In: Common Diagnostic Pitfalls in Thyroid Cytopathology. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-31602-4_9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-31602-4_9

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  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-31602-4

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