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Hurthle Cell Adenoma and Carcinoma

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Encyclopedia of Cancer

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Synonyms

Follicular adenoma, oncocytic variant; Follicular carcinoma, oncocytic variant

Definition

Hurthle cell adenomas and carcinomas are, respectively, benign and malignant epithelial tumors arising from the follicular epithelium of the thyroid gland, containing at least 75 % of oncocytes and lacking the characteristic nuclear features of papillary thyroid carcinoma (i.e., irregular clear nuclei with grooves, overlapping and pseudo-inclusions). The oncocytes in Hurthle cell adenomas and carcinomas are characterized by an eosinophilic granular cytoplasm on hematoxylin and eosin sections with a vesicular nucleus and a large centrally located nucleolus. The oncocytic nature of the cytoplasm is due in the vast majority of the cases to its high content in mitochondria.

Max Askanazy, a German pathologist (1865–1940), was the first to describe the follicular oncocytic cells of the thyroid in 1898 also known as Hurthle cells.

Characteristics

Clinical and Histopathologic Characteristics....

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References

  • Chan JK (2000) Tumors of the thyroid and parathyroid glands. Part A. The thyroid gland. In: Fletcher CDM (ed) Diagnostic histopathology of tumors, vol 2, 2nd edn. Churchill-Livingstone, London, pp 986–988

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Pathology, Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, New York, NY, USA

    Ronald A. Ghossein

Authors
  1. Ronald A. Ghossein
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Ronald A. Ghossein .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Abt. Tumorgenetik, Deutsches Krebsforschungszentrum, Heidelberg, Germany

    Manfred Schwab

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Ghossein, R.A. (2014). Hurthle Cell Adenoma and Carcinoma. In: Schwab, M. (eds) Encyclopedia of Cancer. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-27841-9_2869-2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-27841-9_2869-2

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-642-27841-9

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