Endocrine pathology
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Endocrine pathology · Dec 2016
ReviewMedullary Thyroid Carcinoma: Recent Advances Including MicroRNA Expression.
Medullary thyroid carcinoma (MTC) is an uncommon neuroendocrine tumor arising from the C cells in the thyroid and accounts for about 5 % of all thyroid cancers. MTC exhibits more aggressive behavior than follicular tumors, with the majority of cases presenting with lymph node metastasis. It is particularly common among patients carrying germline RET mutations with almost 100 % penetrance. ⋯ Recently, the gene regulatory roles of microRNAs (miRNAs) in MTC have been studied extensively. Multiple miRNA deregulations have been discovered in MTC with potential prognostic and therapeutic implications. This review provides an overview of the basic pathology of MTC and an update on recent investigational progress.