Thyroid nodules in children, although less common than in adults, have a greater risk of malignancies, particularly in those cases associated with anamnestic, clinical and ultrasonographic risk factors.Among the factors, which have been found to be linked with an increased relative risk of TC in children, an important role seems to be possibly played by an underlying nodular Hashimoto's thyroiditis (HT) and by the serum levels of TSH.Aim of this Commentary was to specifically address this last point.According to the available pediatric literature on the relationships between these risk factors and phenotypical expression of TC in children, it is possible to conclude that: 1) It is not completely clarified if HT per se predisposes to malignancy or if it represents an incidental histologic finding in cases with TC or if it may be the result of an immune response against tumoral cells.
We have shown that the risk of developing thyroid cancer is higher in patients with a silent form of autoimmune thyroid disease -Euthyroid Hashimoto Thyroiditis-(EHT).
A further aim was to examine whether differences in the content of metals exist in regard to the thyroid diseases, such as benign tumor (BT), Hashimoto's thyroiditis (HT), multinodular goiter (MNG) and thyroid cancer (TC).
The prevalence of Hashimoto's thyroiditis (12.9 vs. 11.9%; <i>P</i> = 0.228), Graves's disease (0.7 vs. 0.7%; <i>P</i> = 0.986), and thyroid cancer (0.7 vs. 0.5%; <i>P</i> = 0.305) were comparable among patients with pemphigus and control subjects.
The relationship between Hashimoto's thyroiditis (HT) and thyroid cancer (TC) is a controversial topic; it remains unclear if HT acts as a risk factor of TC.
Several studies evaluated the possible role of vitamin D in the pathogenesis of thyroid diseases, and this review will focus on the available data of the literature evaluating the association between vitamin D and thyroid function, vitamin D and autoimmune thyroid diseases, including Hashimoto's thyroiditis, Graves' disease and post-partum thyroiditis, and vitamin D and thyroid cancer.
In patients primary seen for HPT, thyroid cancer was found in 22 (9.8 %), Hashimoto's thyroiditis in 41 (18.3 %) and micropapillary carcinoma in 36 cases (16.1 %).
A greater prevalence of Graves' disease (0.94% vs. 0.46%, P < 0.001), Hashimoto's thyroiditis (2.68% vs. 0.80%, P < 0.001), and thyroid cancer (1.81% vs. 1.30%, P < 0.001) was observed in SLE patients than in control subjects.