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Thyroid Gland, Salivary Gland, and Thymus

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Well-Differentiated Malignancies

Part of the book series: Current Clinical Pathology ((CCPATH))

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Abstract

Papillary carcinomas are the most common thyroid malignancies. If the encapsulated follicular variant is left out as a distinct entity (precursor or borderline) as they show molecular and immunochemical features between follicular adenomas and papillary carcinomas, it is safe to say that vast majority of papillary carcinomas lack a capsule (exception: the rare macrofollicular variant) which is the trademark of follicular adenomas and carcinomas [1, 2]. Instead, they have infiltrative borders. The characteristic morphological of papillary carcinomas is papillae admixed with a variable portion of follicular structures. The neoplastic papillary structures are characterized by a branching structure composed of a delicate fibrovascular core lined by a one layer of atypical cells. The cliché “not all papillary carcinomas have a papillary growth pattern and not all papillary patterned thyroid lesions are papillary carcinoma” serves as a useful reminder for surgical pathologist but has led to the de-emphasis of the evaluation of the papillary structures in thyroid pathology. Actually the papillary structures in papillary carcinoma are more branching and contain more fibrovascular tissue than the simpler nonbranching papillae present in benign thyroid lesions such as nodular goiters and follicular adenomas [3]. The lining cells of the former are arranged in a nonpolar, haphazard pattern while the latter contains cells with basally located nuclei [3].

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Pathology Beckley Veterans Medical Center (West Virginia), McGuire Veterans Medical Center, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA, USA

    Xichun Sun M.D, Ph.D. (Medical Director, Staff Pathologist, Assistant Professor)

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  1. Xichun Sun M.D, Ph.D.
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Sun, X. (2015). Thyroid Gland, Salivary Gland, and Thymus. In: Well-Differentiated Malignancies. Current Clinical Pathology. Humana Press, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4939-1692-4_9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4939-1692-4_9

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  • Publisher Name: Humana Press, New York, NY

  • Print ISBN: 978-1-4939-1691-7

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-4939-1692-4

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