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Updated: Jul 10, 2026
Spontaneous Murine Model of Anaplastic Thyroid Cancer
Published on: February 3, 2023
UICC-2002 TNM classification is not suitable for differentiated thyroid cancer in children and adolescents
Prasad T Oommen1, Annika Romahn, Tobias Linden
1Department of Paediatrics, University of Lübeck, 23538 Lübeck, Germany. oommen@paedia.ukl.mu-luebeck.de
Background:
Recently the UICC-TNM classification for differentiated thyroid cancer (DTC) was changed neglecting the special circumstances for children affected by the disease. While the 1997 TNM classification grouped tumours
Procedure:
Between 1998 and 2005, 82 patients with histologically proven DTC entered the study. Patients classified according to UICC-TNM classification 1997 were reclassified according to the new classification (2002/2003) and vice versa by cross checking with original pathologist's reports.
Results:
Twenty males and 62 females at a mean age of 12.5 years were evaluated. We observed a definite shift from patients formerly classified as T2 (1-4 cm) to category T1 (
Conclusions:
The 2002 UICC-classification may have a disadvantage for children with tumours measuring between 1 and 2 cm, as those are now classified as T1. A high rate of lymph node involvement in this group reflects the risk of under-diagnosis and -treatment of this group. The current TNM classification for DTC in children should be changed taking the physiological and anatomical differences between children and adults into consideration.
