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Cytology and Pathology of Medullary Thyroid Cancer

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Thyroid Cancer

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Abstract

First defined in the 1950s, medullary carcinoma of the thyroid is a tumor derived from the non-follicular C cell in the gland. The origin of this tumor was first proposed in the mid-1960s by ED Williams, who postulated (based on a few cases) that this unusual thyroid tumor, medullary carcinoma, might indeed be derived from non-follicular thyroid cells, i.e., the C cells, and that a new hormone might be produced by these cells in the thyroid. If so, he theorized that medullary carcinoma could produce calcitonin, and this could become a diagnostic and prognostic marker for this neoplasm. Most importantly the precursor lesion known as C-cell hyperplasia was identified.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, University of Pennsylvania Medical Center, Perelman School of Medicine, 6 Founders Pavilion, 3400 Spruce Street, Philadelphia, PA, 19104, USA

    Zubair W. Baloch MD, PhD & Virginia A. LiVolsi MD

Authors
  1. Zubair W. Baloch MD, PhD
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  2. Virginia A. LiVolsi MD
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Correspondence to Zubair W. Baloch MD, PhD .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Medicine, MedStar Washington Hospital Center Georgetown University School of Medicine, Washington, DC, USA

    Leonard Wartofsky

  2. Nuclear Medicine Research MedStar Research Institute and Washington Hospital Center, Georgetown University School of Medicine Washington Hospital Center, Washington, DC, USA

    Douglas Van Nostrand

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Baloch, Z.W., LiVolsi, V.A. (2016). Cytology and Pathology of Medullary Thyroid Cancer. In: Wartofsky, L., Van Nostrand, D. (eds) Thyroid Cancer. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4939-3314-3_84

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4939-3314-3_84

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