Patterns of thyroid cancers in Zaria

Abstract

Background
Thyroid cancers are not uncommon and frequently affect the middle age population. The frequency of the various histopathological types vary among regions, with follicular carcinoma predominating in iodine-deficient regions. This is the first histopathological review study from this centre, in the recent past.
Materials and Method
This retrospective analysis was based on the review of all histologically diagnosed thyroid cancers in the Pathology Department of the Ahmadu Bello University Teaching Hospital Zaria, between January 1984 and December 2003.
Results
There were 44 cases of thyroid cancer with a male to female ratio of 1:3 and a mean age of 41.7 years. The histopathological types encountered were papillary carcinoma (70.5%), follicular carcinoma (15.9%), and three cases each of medullary and anaplastic carcinomas, respectively.
Conclusion
The study has shown that papillary carcinoma was the predominant histological subtype in Zaria.

Highland Medical Research Journal Vol. 5 (2) 2007 pp. 7-10