Bethesda VI Papiller Tiroid Mikrokarsinomlarında Lenfatik İnvazyon: Tek Merkezli Retrospektif Değerlendirme

ABSTRACTObjective: Although small size in papillary thyroid microcarcinomas is generally associated with low risk, it may not reflect the biological behavior of the tumor. In this study, the effect of lymphatic invasion on metastatic risk and the metastatic characteristics of microcarcinomas with lymphatic invasion compared to macrocarcinomas were evaluated in a cohort with Bethesda VI diagnosis.Materials and Methods: A total of 116 patients with Bethesda VI cytology were categorized into papillary microcarcinoma (n=35) and papillary macrocarcinoma (n=81) groups. Lymphatic and vascular invasion were evaluated separately. Risk factors for central lymph node metastasis and inter-group metastatic burden were compared.Results: Vascular invasion was significantly more frequent in papillary macrocarcinomas (p=0.035), whereas lymphatic invasion rates were similar between the groups (p=0.385). In the papillary microcarcinoma group undergoing lymph node dissection, a significant association was detected between the presence of lymphatic invasion and central metastasis (p