MALIGNANCY INCIDENCE IN SOLITARY NODULE THYROID

Objectives: The incidence of thyroid cancer is rising in the state of Kerala. This study aimed to determine the incidence of malignancy in solitary nodule thyroid (SNT) cases operated on at our tertiary care hospital. Methods: This is a retrospective register based study. All patients operated for SNT over 8 years from 2013 to 2020 were listed and pathological findings were evaluated. Results: A total of 319 patients with SNT were included, with 75.5% being female. The mean age of patients was 42 years (standard deviation=±12.6). Histopathological analysis revealed malignancy in 16% (n=51) of cases. Other most common pathology observed in SNT cases was nodular colloid goiter (67.8%), followed by thyroid adenoma (13.2%), adenomatous nodule (1.9%), and thyroiditis. Among the 51 malignant cases, 70.5% were papillary carcinoma, 25.5% were follicular carcinoma, and one case each of medullary and poorly differentiated carcinoma was identified. A statistically significant association was found between age and malignancy diagnosis (p=0.011, Independent samples t-test). In addition, females had a higher incidence of cancer, with a p=0.021 and an odds ratio of 2.7 (Chi-square test). Conclusion: A solitary nodule has a 16% chance of malignancy, with papillary thyroid carcinoma being the most common type.