Ectopic thyroid as multiple nodules in bilateral lung lobes: a case report

Abstract

Ectopic thyroid rarely occurs in the thoracic or abdominal cavity, especially in the lung. Here, we describe an intrapulmonary thyroid tissue case in bilateral lung lobes without thyroid malignant history, which was found during a routine physical examination. A 37-year-old Chinese female showed multiple pulmonary nodules appearing in bilateral lung lobes on a computed tomography (CT) scan during a routine medical examination. To rule out the possibility of lung metastasis from occult cancer, a percutaneous lung biopsy was performed on a larger nodule. Histopathological examination confirmed that the nodule was completely consistent with normal thyroid tissue, which prevented the patient from requiring any unnecessary treatment. During the patient's follow-up, there was no abnormal thyroid function, and there was no change in the size of the nodule in the lung during serial CT scan. Currently, there is no guidance or consensus on the diagnosis of ectopic thyroid with bilateral multiple pulmonary nodules due to its rarity in clinical practice. When such pulmonary nodules are encountered, very careful diagnosis and follow-up should be performed.

Rare ectopic thyroid as bilateral multiple pulmonary nodules: a case report and literature review

“…Ectopic thyroid tissue in the bilateral lung lobes is extremely rare, with only 4 reported cases thus far [7][8][9][10]. In the present case, we introduced a case of novel ectopic intrapulmonary thyroid tissue that had occurred in both lungs, and this ectopic tissue was incidentally found on a medical screening examination.…”

“…To date, there is no consensus or guidance on the diagnosis and treatment of ectopic thyroid tissue associated with bilateral multiple intrapulmonary nodules in clinical practice. Usually, ectopic thyroid patients have a normal thyroid function and have no symptoms, and these patients have no history of malignant tumours that have been diagnosed conservatively [7,10]. For ectopic thyroid patients with clinical symptoms or a history of malignancy, radioactive iodine ablation and surgical resection are the most common treatments [12].…”

“…Four cases with multiple bilateral nodules have been reported, which were diagnosed as having ectopic goiter. In contrast, three patients were diagnosed with ectopic thyroid tissue without evidence of malignancy, and two of these patients were observed conservatively and were followed up regularly [7,9,10]. Another patient was diagnosed as having ectopic thyroid microfollicular adenoma by surgical resection[8].…”

Rare ectopic thyroid tissue as multiple bilateral pulmonary nodules: a case report and literature review

“…Ectopic thyroid tissue in the bilateral lung lobes is extremely rare, with only 4 previously reported cases [ 7 – 10 ]. In the present case, we described a novel case of ectopic intrapulmonary thyroid tissue that occurred in both lungs, and this ectopic tissue was incidentally found on a medical screening examination.…”

“…Usually, aberrant ectopic thyroid tissue occurs along the midline and rarely in the gall bladder, lung, adrenal gland, heart or liver [ 2 – 6 ]. To our knowledge, most ectopic thyroid tissue in the lung is in a single lobe or homolateral lobes, and only 4 cases of ectopic intrapulmonary thyroid tissue in the bilateral lung lobes have been reported in the literature [ 7 – 10 ]. However, it is extremely difficult to diagnose multiple solid pulmonary nodules using only the patient’s clinical information and radiological findings.…”