Clinicopathological patterns of Thyroid Malignancy in Multinodular Goiter in a Tertiary Care Hospital – Retrospective study

Background: Multinodular goiter is a very common endocrine disorder, affecting 500 to 600 million people worldwide. In India, 54 million people have goiter, with an estimated risk of 167 million. The incidence of malignancy in multinodular goiter varies from 0.9 % to 13% in different parts of the world. Among malignancies, Papillary Thyroid Carcinoma was the most common. Most cases were diagnosed between the fifth and sixth decade of life and were frequently seen in females. Aims & Objectives: * To study the age and sex-wise incidence of multinodular goiter. * To evaluate the various morphological types of thyroid malignancy in multinodular goiter. * To study the thyroidectomy specimens by routine histopathological examination. Materials and Methods: A retrospective study was performed on 136 surgically resected thyroidectomy specimens of multinodular goiter. The study was conducted in the department of pathology for a duration of two years, from January 2020 to December 2021, at Santhiram Medical College and General Hospital, Nandyal, Andhra Pradesh, India. Results: Among the 136 cases of multinodular goiter, 107 (79%) were female and 29 (21%) were male. Histopathological examination showed benign multinodular goiter was present in 124 (91%) cases. Malignant thyroid lesions were found in 12 (9%) cases. Among the malignancies, Papillary Thyroid Carcinoma was the commonest. Conclusion: Multinodular goiter could be a sign of different types of thyroid malignancy. The most common type was papillary carcinoma.