[Carcinoma of the thyroid gland with foamy cells in the stroma]

Foamy cells were found in the stroma of 23 out of a total of 1,073 differentiated carcinomas of the thyroid gland investigated during the 1946--1977 period, i. e. in 2.1% of the cases concerned. Of these, 15 carcinomas with foamy cells showed purely papillary differentiation, while the remaining 8 showed mixed papillofollicular structures. Apart from the papillary structure, the development of foamy cells may have been associated with hypercholesterolaemia due to hypothyroidism.