Thyroid Malignancy in Patients Who Underwent Thyroidectomy for Multinodular Goiter and Solitary Thyroid Nodule

Worldwide, incidence of thyroid malignancy is increasing. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the pattern and magnitude of nodule types.

A cross-sectional retrospective study was performed at Saint Paul's Hospital Millennium Medical College, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, among patients who underwent thyroidectomy from May 2018 to June 2022. Data were extracted using a structured format. Descriptive statistics were performed using SPSS version 26 software. Results were presented in terms of percentages and frequencies.

During a 4-year period, 1,476 patients had thyroidectomies and histopathologic information of 212 malignant cases was studied. Within multinodular goiter (MNG), thyroid cancer accounted for 69.8% (n = 148) of patients, whereas in solitary nodules, it accounted for 30.2%. From the total, 160 participants (75.5%) were female, and the female:male ratio was 3.1 (mean, 41.72; ± standard deviation [SD], 16.44) years, and age range of 12-88 years versus men, who have a mean of 44.71 (±SD, 14.91) years and an age range of 21-78 years. The mean age of male cases with solitary nodule and MNG was 40.6 and 46.5 years, respectively. The most frequent cancer in both types of nodules, accounting for 59% of patients, was papillary carcinoma, which was found in 64% of solitary nodules and 57.4% of multinodular nodules. Overall, 14.1% of tumors had multiple centers (17.4% in multinodular nodules and 6.9% in solitary nodules). In 7.1% of patients, microcarcinoma (<1 cm) was found, with papillary carcinoma accounting for 91.7% of the total.

Compared with men, women with cancer typically manifested at a younger age. Males with malignancy in solitary nodules had a lower mean age than those with MNGs. The most frequent and significant cause of multicentric presentation is papillary carcinoma.