Rectal Cancer Presenting with Isolated Thyroid Metastasis: A Case Report

A 59-year-old female with chief complaints of white discharge per rectum for one month, pain in the lower abdomen for one month, and neck swelling for six months. She was diagnosed with adenocarcinoma of the rectum with a single site of metastases in the right lobe of the thyroid. The patient was gi...

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Main Authors: Karan Sood, Pratiksha Tyagi, Amol Dongre
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: JCDR Research and Publications Private Limited 2025-07-01
Series:Journal of Clinical and Diagnostic Research
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Online Access:https://jcdr.net/article_fulltext.asp?issn=0973-709x&year=2025&month=July&volume=19&issue=7&page=XD04-XD06&id=21237
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author Karan Sood
Pratiksha Tyagi
Amol Dongre
author_facet Karan Sood
Pratiksha Tyagi
Amol Dongre
author_sort Karan Sood
collection DOAJ
description A 59-year-old female with chief complaints of white discharge per rectum for one month, pain in the lower abdomen for one month, and neck swelling for six months. She was diagnosed with adenocarcinoma of the rectum with a single site of metastases in the right lobe of the thyroid. The patient was given six months of FOLFOX, following which the rectal primary showed a complete response but stable disease in the thyroid lesion. The patient underwent a thyroidectomy, which confirmed a metastasis from the rectum. She was given radiation to the thyroid bed postoperatively and underwent chemoradiation for the rectal primary. She underwent a wait-and-watch approach and is disease free for two years. Thyroid metastases from Colorectal Carcinoma (CRC) are an uncommon clinical finding, accounting for 2-3% of all malignant tumors of the thyroid. The reported incidence in CRC patients is approximately 0.1%, with most cases involving extensive disease and poor prognosis. In the available literature, only 24 cases of thyroid gland metastases from CRC are reported. However, isolated metastases to the thyroid have been observed, raising diagnostic and therapeutic challenges. Fine-needle aspiration cytology and Immunohistochemistry (IHC), using markers such as Thyroid Transcription Factor-1 (TTF-1), Thyroglobulin (Tg), and CDX2, play pivotal roles in confirming the diagnosis. Advances in imaging, particularly Positron Emission Tomography (PET) scans, have improved detection rates. The vascular and lymphatic systems facilitate metastatic spread, yet the role of thyroidectomy remains controversial due to a lack of survival benefits. Chemotherapy and radiotherapy are typically reserved for palliation in cases of advanced disease.
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spelling doaj-art-2422cebd6a2b48ff970997b4b0c64a4d2025-08-20T03:51:43ZengJCDR Research and Publications Private LimitedJournal of Clinical and Diagnostic Research2249-782X0973-709X2025-07-01197XD04XD0610.7860/JCDR/2025/77070.21237Rectal Cancer Presenting with Isolated Thyroid Metastasis: A Case ReportKaran Sood0Pratiksha Tyagi1Amol Dongre2Senior Resident, Department of Medical Oncology, Jawaharlal Nehru Medical College, Wardha, Maharashtra, India.Senior Resident, Department of Radiation Oncology, Tata Medical Centre, Kolkata, West Bengal, India.Professor, Department of Medical Oncology, Jawaharlal Nehru Medical College, Wardha, Maharashtra, India.A 59-year-old female with chief complaints of white discharge per rectum for one month, pain in the lower abdomen for one month, and neck swelling for six months. She was diagnosed with adenocarcinoma of the rectum with a single site of metastases in the right lobe of the thyroid. The patient was given six months of FOLFOX, following which the rectal primary showed a complete response but stable disease in the thyroid lesion. The patient underwent a thyroidectomy, which confirmed a metastasis from the rectum. She was given radiation to the thyroid bed postoperatively and underwent chemoradiation for the rectal primary. She underwent a wait-and-watch approach and is disease free for two years. Thyroid metastases from Colorectal Carcinoma (CRC) are an uncommon clinical finding, accounting for 2-3% of all malignant tumors of the thyroid. The reported incidence in CRC patients is approximately 0.1%, with most cases involving extensive disease and poor prognosis. In the available literature, only 24 cases of thyroid gland metastases from CRC are reported. However, isolated metastases to the thyroid have been observed, raising diagnostic and therapeutic challenges. Fine-needle aspiration cytology and Immunohistochemistry (IHC), using markers such as Thyroid Transcription Factor-1 (TTF-1), Thyroglobulin (Tg), and CDX2, play pivotal roles in confirming the diagnosis. Advances in imaging, particularly Positron Emission Tomography (PET) scans, have improved detection rates. The vascular and lymphatic systems facilitate metastatic spread, yet the role of thyroidectomy remains controversial due to a lack of survival benefits. Chemotherapy and radiotherapy are typically reserved for palliation in cases of advanced disease.https://jcdr.net/article_fulltext.asp?issn=0973-709x&year=2025&month=July&volume=19&issue=7&page=XD04-XD06&id=21237colon cancercolorectal neoplasmsthyroid glandthyroidectomy
spellingShingle Karan Sood
Pratiksha Tyagi
Amol Dongre
Rectal Cancer Presenting with Isolated Thyroid Metastasis: A Case Report
Journal of Clinical and Diagnostic Research
colon cancer
colorectal neoplasms
thyroid gland
thyroidectomy
title Rectal Cancer Presenting with Isolated Thyroid Metastasis: A Case Report
title_full Rectal Cancer Presenting with Isolated Thyroid Metastasis: A Case Report
title_fullStr Rectal Cancer Presenting with Isolated Thyroid Metastasis: A Case Report
title_full_unstemmed Rectal Cancer Presenting with Isolated Thyroid Metastasis: A Case Report
title_short Rectal Cancer Presenting with Isolated Thyroid Metastasis: A Case Report
title_sort rectal cancer presenting with isolated thyroid metastasis a case report
topic colon cancer
colorectal neoplasms
thyroid gland
thyroidectomy
url https://jcdr.net/article_fulltext.asp?issn=0973-709x&year=2025&month=July&volume=19&issue=7&page=XD04-XD06&id=21237
work_keys_str_mv AT karansood rectalcancerpresentingwithisolatedthyroidmetastasisacasereport
AT pratikshatyagi rectalcancerpresentingwithisolatedthyroidmetastasisacasereport
AT amoldongre rectalcancerpresentingwithisolatedthyroidmetastasisacasereport