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Giant sternal metastasis secondary to follicular carcinoma of the thyroid gland: report of a case

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Abstract

A 70-year-old woman was admitted to our department for investigation and treatment of a progressively enlarging multinodular goiter and a fast growing mass infiltrating the sternum. The patient was euthyroid, but computed tomography (CT) and ultrasonography showed a mass in the anterior mediastinum infiltrating the sternum, with a dominant nodule in the right lobe of the thyroid. Fine needle aspiration biopsy results from both the cervical and the mediastinal masses were suggestive of follicular thyroid carcinoma. The patient underwent total thyroidectomy, thymectomy, and total removal of the mass, along with parts of the sternum, sternocleidomastoid muscle, and attached ribs. The thoracic wall was reconstructed with gortex dual mesh covered by muscle flaps from both pectoralis major muscles. Pathological analysis of both masses confirmed the fine needle aspiration findings and the patient received three cycles of radioactive iodine treatment. She had an uneventful postoperative course, but died of a stroke 8 years later.

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Conflict of interest

Sotirios Moraitis and his coauthors report no conflict of interest.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Thoracic Surgery, Athens Naval and Veterans Hospital, Athens, Greece

    Sotirios Moraitis & Levon Toufektzian

  2. Laboratory of Experimental Surgery and Surgical Research “Christeas Hall”, University of Athens Medical School, 15, Agiou Thoma Street, Goudi, 11527, Athens, Greece

    Apostolos Perelas

  3. Department of Endocrinology, Athens Naval and Veterans Hospital, Athens, Greece

    Nikolaos Mazarakis

  4. 1st Department of General Surgery, Athens Naval and Veterans Hospital, Athens, Greece

    Georgios Pechlivanides

Authors
  1. Sotirios Moraitis
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  2. Apostolos Perelas
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  3. Levon Toufektzian
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  4. Nikolaos Mazarakis
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  5. Georgios Pechlivanides
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Apostolos Perelas.

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Moraitis, S., Perelas, A., Toufektzian, L. et al. Giant sternal metastasis secondary to follicular carcinoma of the thyroid gland: report of a case. Surg Today 42, 895–898 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00595-012-0192-y

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00595-012-0192-y

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