Estrogen Receptor- and Progesterone Receptor-Positive Diffuse Sclerosing Variant of Papillary Thyroid Carcinoma: A Case Report

The diffuse sclerosing variant of papillary thyroid carcinoma (DSV-PTC) is a relatively rare tumor. We herein report the case of young woman with DSV-PTC who developed cervical lymph node recurrence 7 years after the initial surgery. A 15-year-old female patient with no medical or family history of thyroid tumors developed a thyroid neoplasm in the right lobe. Right thyroidectomy and regional lymphadenectomy were performed, and the tumor was diagnosed as DSV-PTC. She was followed up as an outpatient. Seven years after the surgery, cervical lymph node recurrence developed. On microscopic examination, the thyroid tumor showed a papillary growth pattern with numerous psammoma bodies and distinct fibrosis. Immunohistochemically, the tumor cells were estrogen receptor and progesterone receptor positive with reduced membranous expression of E-cadherin and were intermingled with S-100-positive dendritic/Langerhans cells. DSV-PTC is characterized by a strong tendency for invasion and metastasis. Thus, accurate diagnosis is clinically important, and a morphological and immunohistochemical understanding of DSV-PTC is necessary.