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Intense 18-fluorodeoxyglucose uptake by the thymus on PET scan does not necessarily herald recurrence of thyroid carcinoma.

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Godart, V. [UCL] Weynand, Birgit [UCL] Coche, Edgard [UCL] De Nayer, Pierre-Pascal [UCL] Daumerie, Chantal [UCL]

This is the first report of intense fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography (FDG-PET) uptake secondary to thymic hyperplasia during follow-up for thyroid carcinoma. A 36-yr-old woman underwent thyroidectomy for a papillary carcinoma measuring 4 cm in diameter. After two doses of radioiodine, thyroglobulin (Tg) remained detectable following recombinant human TSH (rhTSH) stimulation. A whole body scan (WBS) was negative. On computed tomography (CT) scan, a slightly lobulated thymus was visualized. PET scan showed intense thymic uptake. Following resection, anatomo-pathological analysis showed homogenous hyperplastic thymic gland without neoplastic cells. Two months later, under levothyroxin (L-T4) substitution, Tg was no longer detectable and PET scanning did not show any 18-FDG uptake. This observation suggests that thymic FDG uptake does not necessarily herald recurrence of thyroid carcinoma and must be interpreted with caution in such a setting. Other conditions associated with abnormal uptake by hyperplastic thymus must also be envisaged.

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Bibliographic reference Godart, V. ; Weynand, Birgit ; Coche, Edgard ; De Nayer, Pierre-Pascal ; Daumerie, Chantal. Intense 18-fluorodeoxyglucose uptake by the thymus on PET scan does not necessarily herald recurrence of thyroid carcinoma.. In: Journal of endocrinological investigation, Vol. 28, no. 2, p. 1024-1028 (2005)
Permanent URL http://hdl.handle.net/2078.1/10483