Galectin-3 detection on large-needle aspiration biopsy improves preoperative selection of thyroid nodules: A prospective cohort study

Abstract Objective: To compare two methods-power Doppler and thermography-for the analysis of nodule vascularization and subsequent selection of nodules to be biopsied. Materials and Methods: A total of 510 subjects with thyroid nodules were analyzed by power Doppler and submitted to fine-needle aspiration biopsy (FNAB). Thirty-seven patients were submitted to nodule excision (29 due to carcinoma or suspected carcinoma and 8 by patient choice). Among those patients, power Doppler had raised the suspicion of malignancy in 39 lesions, compared with 48 for FNAB. Another group, comprising 110 patients, underwent thermography, which raised the suspicion of malignancy in 124 thyroid nodules, as did FNAB. Malignant nodules were excised in all 110 of those patients (95 underwent nodulectomy and 15 underwent thyroidectomy), malignancy being confirmed by intraoperative examination of frozen biopsy samples. Results: In relation to the FNAB findings, the sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, negative predictive value, and accuracy of power Doppler were 95.16%, 23.52%, 96.22%, 16.70%, and 89.51%, respectively, compared with 100%, 58.06%, 87.73%, 100%, and 89.51%, respectively, for thermography. Conclusion: Thermography was more precise than was power Doppler for the selection of thyroid nodules to be biopsied.

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Galectin-3 immunodetection on large needle aspiration biopsy of thyroid nodules

Biomedicine & Pharmacotherapy ◽

10.1016/j.biopha.2008.07.075 ◽

2008 ◽

Vol 62 (8) ◽

pp. 520-521

Author(s):

A. Carpi ◽

J. Mechanick ◽

A. Nicolini ◽

A. Bartolazzi

Keyword(s):

Thyroid Nodules ◽

Needle Aspiration ◽

Aspiration Biopsy ◽

Galectin 3 ◽

Needle Aspiration Biopsy

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Galectin-3 and CD44v6 Isoforms in the Preoperative Evaluation of Thyroid Nodules

Journal of Clinical Oncology ◽

10.1200/jco.1999.17.11.3494 ◽

1999 ◽

Vol 17 (11) ◽

pp. 3494-3502 ◽

Cited By ~ 90

Author(s):

Alessandra Gasbarri ◽

Marco Paolo Martegani ◽

Fabrizio Del Prete ◽

Teresa Lucante ◽

Pier Giorgio Natali ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Fine Needle Aspiration ◽

Messenger Rna ◽

Thyroid Nodules ◽

Fine Needle Aspiration Biopsy ◽

Preoperative Evaluation ◽

Needle Aspiration ◽

Aspiration Biopsy ◽

Fine Needle ◽

Galectin 3 ◽

Needle Aspiration Biopsy

PURPOSE: Thyroid cancer is the most frequently occurring endocrine malignancy; however, preoperative diagnosis of some lesions, in particular those with follicular histology, is difficult, and a consistent number of nototherwise-specified “follicular nodules” are surgically resected more for diagnosis than therapeutic purposes. In this study, we investigated whether the lectin-related molecules CD44v6 and galectin-3, the expression of which is altered during deregulated cell growth and malignant transformation, could be potential markers for improving the diagnostic accuracy of conventional cytology. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A comparative immuno-chemical and molecular analysis was performed on 157 thyroid specimens representative of normal, benign, and malignant tissues, and on 36 cytologic samples obtained preoperatively by fine-needle aspiration biopsy from nonselected patients with palpable thyroid nodules. RESULTS: Normal thyrocytes did not express galectin-3 nor CD44v6. Although the expression of CD44v6 isnegligible in thyroiditis, these molecules are variably detected in benign and malignant proliferative lesions. Interestingly, galectin-3 is never expressed in benign lesions, but it is invariably detected in cancers. A comparative evaluation of CD44v6 and galectin-3 expression in thyroid malignancies demonstrated that these molecules are coexpressed at the messenger RNA and protein level in almost all lesions. CONCLUSION: Our findings suggest that CD44v6 and galectin-3 could be potential markers to preoperatively identify malignant transformed thyrocytes. Immunodetection of these molecules on cytologic specimens obtained by fine-needle aspiration biopsy is an accurate and improved method for selecting, on a molecular basis, those nodular lesions of the thyroid gland that need to be surgically resected.

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