Medullar thyroid cancer

G2 chromosomal sensitivity to bleomycin (30 micrograms/ml) was tested in PHA-stimulated lymphocytes of healthy subjects and in patients with familial and sporadic tumors. These were multiple endocrine neoplasias (MEN) types 1, 2A and 2B, familial medullar thyroid cancer, Recklinghausen neurofibromatosis type I, sporadic and hereditary malignant tumors, and a preleukemic disorder, the myelodysplastic syndrome. Control subjects were either young (15-20), middle-aged (28-49) or old (70-83 years). Cells from old healthy subjects and from subjects with MEN 1 showed increased sensitivity to clastogenic effects of bleomycin...

Apart from production of argirophilic substance, tumor cells of medullary carcinomas of the thyroid gland form colloids due to differentiation of tumor elements into both argirophilic and colloid-producing cells. Accordingly, solid-follicular structures appear in them rather frequently. This requires the use of Grimelius test for differential diagnosis of medullar and follicular carcinoma of the thyroid gland.

The paper deals with a study of 42 cases of medullary carcinoma which accounts for 12.6% of all forms of thyroid cancer. The female-to-male ratio was 1.3:1, mean age - 45 years. Medullary carcinoma occurs sporadically in cases of familial endocrine syndrome. A case of Sipple's syndrome is reported. Medullar carcinoma is a hormonally-active tumor which produces calcitonin, the latter serving as a tumor marker for this carcinoma. Medullary carcinoma is characterized by bilateral involvement of the thyroid, which is more frequent in cases of familial disease, and a high rate of incidence of regional metastases (82...

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Tumorous amyloid deposits in the neck region of a 31-year-old man caused difficulties in the preoperative differential diagnosis of a tumorous process of the thyroid gland. Several tumorous amyloid deposits compressing and eroding the left nevus vagus and having no connection to the trachea or thyroid gland were removed. Such isolated tumorous amyloid deposits in the neck region have not been described before. Histologically no thyroid tissue was found. A medullar cancer of the thyorid gland that has to be excluded in such cases was not found...

We may recapitulate: Chemotherapy, first of all with adriamycin, has proved successful in thyroid cancer even after exhaustion of the therapeutic measures used so far. The combination of adriamycin with bleomycin and Velbe, corresponding to our preliminary experiences, seems to be superior to a monotherapy with adriamycin. The side effects remain absolutely tolerable. Hence follows concerning further procedure that chemotherapy has to be applied earlier than practiced up to now, i.e. as soon as criteria for metastasition are observed and/or if the primary treatment--operation and irradiation--does not satisfy...