Papillary thyroid cancer in children and adolescents does not differ in growth pattern and metastatic behavior

To provide comprehensive clinicopathologic data, comparing the growth pattern and metastatic behavior of papillary thyroid cancer between children and adolescents.

This clinicopathologic investigation included 83 consecutive patients ages 6 to 18 years operated on for papillary thyroid cancer at a tertiary referral center in Germany (1994 to 2009).

There was no difference in sex distribution, re-operation rate, medical history of external radiation, multifocal tumor growth, number of thyroid cancers, extrathyroidal tumor growth, lymph node metastasis, numbers of involved and removed nodes or distant metastasis among patients ages 6 to 11, 12 to 15, and 16 to 18 years. Patients with extrathyroidal growth, unlike those with intrathyroidal growth, had larger tumors, especially in the oldest age group (means of 20, 26, and 44 mm for patients ages 6 to 11, 12 to 15, and 16 to 18 years; P=.015); the statistical significance was lost after correction for multiple testing.

Having comparable extent of disease, children should not undergo less extensive neck operations than adolescents for papillary thyroid cancer.