18F-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography/computed tomography for primary thyroid langerhans histiocytosis: A case report and literature review

Langerhans cell histiocytosis (LCH) is a rare clonal proliferative disease, with an incidence rate of 4.0–5.4/1 million individuals. LCH encompasses a spectrum of disorders with diverse clinical presentations ranging from a single organ to multiple organ involvement. LCH rarely involves the thyroid gland. We presented a case with LCH of thyroid gland. The patient had painless progressive neck enlargement and then diabetes insipidus. Ultrasonic scan and magnetic resonance imaging scan revealed nodular goiter and pituitary stalk enlargement, respectively. Histopathological analysis revealed features of histiocytoid cells. 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose (18F-FDG) positron emission tomography/computed tomography (PET/CT) was performed in order to rule out the presence of whole body infiltration. 18F-FDG PET/CT also demonstrated increased uptake in the thickening pituitary stalk and maxillofacial skin lesion, in addition to the bilateral thyroid nodules, CT showed the left lung nodule and the skull destruction without 18F-FDG uptake. This report emphasizes the role of 18F-FDG PET/CT in multiple organs involvement of patients with LCH.