Thyroid follicular renal cell carcinoma excluding thyroid metastases: A case report

BACKGROUND: Thyroid follicular renal cell carcinoma is a special type of renal cell carcinoma newly recognized in recent years. It has attracted attention because of its unique histology, immunophenotype, and clinical characteristics. It has a very low incidence, and the number of case reports available for review is limited. Moreover, a thyroid mass with type of tumour is rare. CASE SUMMARY: We report a case of a renal mass with a bilateral thyroid mass that was accidentally discovered in a 60-year-old man during physical examination. B-mode ultrasound showed a hypoechoic mass in the middle and lower parenchyma of the right kidney, and computed tomography showed an iso-density shadow tumour in the right kidney. Contrast agents had a significant continuous enhancement effect on the tumour, and the enhancement was not uniform. After partial nephrectomy, pathological analysis was performed to rule out the possibility that the renal tumour was caused by thyroid tumour metastasis. Needle biopsy of the thyroid tumour confirmed that the renal cell carcinoma was not related to the thyroid tumour. The patient was alive at the last postoperative follow-up. CONCLUSION: This is the third published case in which thyroid tumour biopsy was performed to confirm that thyroid follicular renal cell carcinoma is not thyroid related.