Two Breast Metastases from Thyroid Carcinoma Presented 6 Years Later after Total Thyroidectomy: A Case Report

• Main Authors: Gene Hyuk Kwon, Bong Joo Kang, Na Young Jung, Sung Hun Kim, Ahwon Lee
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: The Korean Society of Radiology 2016-04-01
• Series: 대한영상의학회지
• Subjects: thyroid carcinoma; breast; metastasis; computed tomography; ultrasonography; positron-emission tomography
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.3348/jksr.2016.74.4.267

Thyroid carcinoma is usually indolent with good prognosis, as compared to other malignancy. Distant metastases from thyroid cancer are rare and usually manifest as multiple lesions especially in lungs, bones and lymph nodes, in advanced stages of the disease. Metastasis to the breast from thyroid carcinoma is extremely rare, with about 16 cases reported in the English literature. Herein, we reported a case of metastatic poorly differentiated thyroid carcinoma, which presented as 2 breast masses in a 72-year-old woman, 6 years after total thyroidectomy for papillary thyroid carcinoma. Although the computed tomography (CT) and ultrasonography (USG) image findings are nonspecific oval mass with circumscribed or partially indistinct margin, metastases from thyroid cancer should be included in the differential diagnosis when recurrence of thyroid carcinoma is suspected. Also, fusion images of CT and USG are helpful to the radiologists in localizing the targeted lesion and conducting accurate USG-guided biopsy.