Follicular thyroid carcinoma presenting as solitary liver metastasis: a case report

J Med Case Rep. 2016 Dec 3;10(1):347. doi: 10.1186/s13256-016-1140-z.

Abstract

Background: Distant metastasis from differentiated thyroid carcinoma at presentation is rare and isolated liver metastasis on presentation is almost unknown. We report a case of primary follicular carcinoma of the thyroid with isolated liver metastasis at presentation.

Case presentation: A 65-year-old man of Kashmiri origin presented to our tertiary referral center with obstructive jaundice; he was evaluated with magnetic resonance cholangiopancreatography and positron emission tomography-computed tomography. Positron emission tomography-computed tomography documented a lesion in his liver in addition to a metabolically active thyroid nodule. Fine needle aspiration cytology of the liver lesion supplemented with immunohistochemical analysis using thyroid transcription factor 1 confirmed the lesion as being an isolated metastasis from the primary thyroid lesion (which on fine needle aspiration cytology showed follicular architecture).

Conclusions: To best of our knowledge, this is first reported case of primary differentiated thyroid carcinoma presenting with isolated liver metastasis manifesting as obstructive jaundice.

Keywords: Case report; Liver metastasis; Positron emission tomography; TTF1; Thyroid follicular carcinoma.

Publication types

  • Case Reports

MeSH terms

  • Adenocarcinoma, Follicular / diagnostic imaging
  • Aged
  • Biopsy, Fine-Needle
  • Fatal Outcome
  • Humans
  • Liver / pathology*
  • Liver Neoplasms / diagnostic imaging
  • Liver Neoplasms / secondary*
  • Male
  • Thyroid Neoplasms / diagnostic imaging
  • Thyroid Neoplasms / pathology*
  • Tomography, X-Ray Computed*