Thyroid cancer in hyperthyroid patients: is it different clinical entity?

Objective: In this retrospective study, we aimed to analyze the frequency of thyroid cancer in patients who underwent thyroidectomy for hyperthyroidism.

Methods: A total number of 177 patients, who underwent surgery for hyperthyroidism between August 2005 and March 2010, were included in this study. Demographic, clinical, radiologic, and laboratory data were collected retrospectively.Results. Postoperative histopathological examinations revealed thyroid malignancy in 13 (7.3%) patients. Among these 13 patients presenting thyroid malignancy, 53.9% were diagnosed with multinodular toxic goiter (MTG), 38.5% with uninodular toxic goiter (UTG) and 7.6% with Graves' disease.

Conclusions: Thyroid carcinoma is common in hyperthyroidism and thyroid fine-needle aspiration biopsy (TFNAB) is a reliable method in the diagnosis of the thyroid malignancy in these patients. We suggest that it is reasonable to evaluate nodules with TFNAB in hyperthyroid patients prior to surgical intervention.