[Value of total thyroidectomy with cervical dissection in the treatment of differentiated thyroid cancers]

Study of 52 cases of differentiated carcinoma of the thyroid treated by anatomically total thyroidectomy with block dissection of the cervical nodes indicated three amin findings: examination by puncture for cytological examination would have missed 8 micro-carcinomas; unilateral excistion would have bee inadequate in 12 patients; lymph node excision confined to detectable lymphadenopathies would have left neoplastic tissue in place in 8 cases. In the light of these advantages from an oncological standpoint, the complications of total thyroidectomy with bilateral block dissection are few and can be avoided in most cases.