[Medullary carcinomas of the thyroid. General review apropos of 3 further cases]

The authors report of three cases of medullary carcinoma of the thyroid and, from a review of the literature, study the definition, frequency, embryological and etiological characteristics of this disease. The physiology of thyrocalcitonin, the concept of the APUD system the secretion of active substances by the tumour cells are considered. The macroscopic and microscopic characteristics and its mode of spread are described. The two main clinical forms, the sporadic form and the familial form are described together with the other endocrine involvements. Among the factors in positive diagnosis, accent is placed on per-operative histological examination and on biological tests of familial detection. Among the forms of treatment the essential place of surgery explains partly the relatively favourable course and prognosis of the malignant disease.