Axillary vein thrombosis as the initial symptom in metastatic papillary carcinoma of the thyroid

A 61-year-old woman developed right axillary vein thrombosis; 30 years earlier she had been surgically treated for papillary carcinoma of the thyroid. Despite intensive treatment she eventually died of disseminated papillary thyroid carcinoma. This appears to be the first reported case of axillary vein thrombosis as the initial symptom of metastatic thyroid carcinoma.