[Clinicopathologic and immunohistochemical study of the clear cell variant of thyroid carcinoma]

Immunohistochemical studies on 12 cases of clear cell variant of thyroid carcinoma demonstrated immunoreactivity for thyroglobulin in the clear cells of 11 tumors and for calcitonin in those of 1 tumor. This method can be helpful in differentiating primary clear cell carcinomas of the thyroid from those originating from other tissues. The clear cell variant of thyroid carcinoma exhibits a more aggressive local behavior, but satisfactory curative results can be obtained by sufficient surgical excision of the primary thyroid tumor and metastatic carcinoma of the cervical lymph nodes. The clear appearance of the tumor cells is mainly due to intracellular accumulation of large amounts of glycogen.