Thyroid adenoma is the most common benign tumor of the thyroid gland and is frequently observed in women under the age of 40. It includes follicular adenomas, follicular adenomas with papillary structures, and oncocytic (Hürthle cell) adenomas, with follicular adenomas being the most common type.
Clinical Manifestations
The condition typically presents as a round or oval-shaped nodule in the neck, which is usually solitary, slightly firm, smooth in texture, and grows slowly. The nodule is nontender and moves up and down with swallowing. Most patients do not experience any symptoms. In cases where cystic degeneration occurs and intralesional bleeding results from ruptured blood vessels in the cyst wall, the adenoma may enlarge rapidly over a short period of time, accompanied by localized distension and pain.
Treatment
Thyroid adenomas have the potential to cause hyperthyroidism and malignant transformation. For this reason, early surgical resection of the affected thyroid lobe or partial resection (for smaller adenomas) is recommended. Frozen section examinations of the excised specimen are often performed immediately. However, distinguishing between a thyroid adenoma and follicular thyroid carcinoma requires thorough histopathological evaluation of the specimen after surgery.