Ectopic Thyroid Tissue in the Adrenal Gland

Abstract

Foci of ectopic thyroid tissue are uncommon. Most sites of thyroid ectopia are confined to the neck region. The presence of ectopic thyroid tissue outside the migration pathway of the primitive thyroid in other locations is exceptional. Given that any disease of the thyroid gland may also affect ectopic thyroid tissue, pathologists has to recognize benign or malignant conditions that may develop in the ectopic focus. We present the case of a 32-year-old woman with ectopic thyroid parenchyma in the adrenal gland. Clinically, postoperative thyroid ultrasound echography and computed tomography scans did not reveal any thyroid tumor. The ectopic tissue was a cyst bordered by mature follicular thyroid structures and was histologically benign, without the molecular alterations associated with malignant tumors of follicular cell derivation (BRAFV600E, N-RAS, H-RAS, K-RAS). Review of the literature reveals that adrenal ectopic thyroid tissue is nearly always cystic and has distinctive pathologic features.

Multifocal ectopic thyroid tissues including breast: A case report

“…Clinical reports of extra-lingual ectopic thyroid tissue are rare. We found a few studies of ectopic thyroid in adrenal gland (4,5), gallbladder (6), jejunum (7) and mesentery (8) but not pure ectopic thyroid in the breast. The etiology of this abnormality is not fully understood.…”

Da Vinci robot-assisted resection to treat abdominal ectopic thyroid: A case report and literature review

“…Guerra et al [4] reported that adrenal gland thyroid is very rare and is di cult to understand based on thyroid embryology. However, on the basis of the reported cases [5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14], the adrenal gland is not an uncommon site of abdominal ET. The cause of adrenal gland ET remains unknown.…”

Ectopic Thyroid Nodule

“…Localizaciones mas distantes del trayecto normal de migración han sido reportados, como el esófago, ovario, corazón. Estas localizaciones son menos frecuentes [6][7][8][9] . Se ha reportado un solo caso de localización axilar.…”

“…En nuestro caso, se trataba de un nódulo bien delimitado, sin atipias celulares correspondiente a una lesión benigna. Una metástasis, un cancer tiroideo 9 o una transformación maligna del tejido tiroideo ectópico, raramente descrito como carcinoma papilar y folicular [11][12][13] , fueron excluidos.…”

“…Si el examen histológico concluye en una transformación maligna, el tratamiento quirúrgico se impone 8 . Algunos proponen la resección quirúrgica obligatoria considerando el riesgo potencial de la transformación maligna del tejido ectópico tiroideo 3,9 .…”