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Thyroid Cancer

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Molecular Pathology in Clinical Practice

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Abstract

Thyroid cancer is the most common type of endocrine malignancy. Initiation and progression of thyroid cancer involves multiple genetic and epigenetic alterations, of which mutations leading to the activation of the MAPK and PI3K/PTEN/AKT signaling pathways are crucial for tumor initiation and progression. Common mutations found in thyroid cancer are point mutations of the BRAF and RAS genes, as well as RET/PTC and PAX8/PPARG chromosomal rearrangements. More recently, a number of other mutations have been characterized, which occur in this cancer type with significantly lower frequency, but are associated with specific phenotypic and biological properties. These somatic mutations are useful diagnostic and prognostic markers for thyroid cancer and are being incorporated into clinical practice, offering a valuable tool for management of patients with thyroid nodules and cancer.

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  1. Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Division of Molecular and Genomic Pathology, University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, 3477 Euler Way, Pittsburgh, PA, 15213, USA

    Marina N. Nikiforova M.D. & Yuri E. Nikiforov M.D., Ph.D.

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  1. Marina N. Nikiforova M.D.
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Correspondence to Yuri E. Nikiforov M.D., Ph.D. .

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  1. Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, University of Vermont College of Medicine and University of Vermont Medical Center, Burlington, Vermont, USA

    Debra G.B. Leonard

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Nikiforova, M.N., Nikiforov, Y.E. (2016). Thyroid Cancer. In: Leonard, D. (eds) Molecular Pathology in Clinical Practice. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-19674-9_36

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