Several lines of evidence suggest that tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNFalpha) may contribute to the pathogenesis of autoimmune thyroid disease. It is not known, however, whether increased thyroidal TNFalpha levels are associated with changes in thyroid function. The purpose of the present study was to utilize in situ hybridization histochemistry and immunohistochemistry to determine if the expr...

OBJECTIVE In order to avoid the misdiagnosis of thyroid diseases, we need to discuss the clinical features and diagnostic methods of cervical esophageal cancer and Zenker's diverticulum. METHODS The clinical and laboratory data of seven cases were reviewed retrospectively, and in all cases, esophageal-related diseases were misdiagnosed as thyroid diseases preoperatively. Among them, two cases...

The receptor for the stem cell factor encoded by the c-kit proto oncogene is expressed by a number of epithelial cells including thyrocytes. Since malignant transformation may be associated with loss of this recep tor (melanoma and breast cancer), we have analyzed its expression in benign (38 cases) and malignant (31 cases) thyroid lesions. While low levels of f-kii are expressed in normal thyr...

BACKGROUND Astatine-211 (211At) is an alpha particle emitting halogen with almost optimal linear energy transfer for creating DNA double-strand breaks and is thus proposed for radionuclide therapy when bound to tumor-seeking agents. Unbound 211At accumulates in the thyroid gland, and the concept of basal radiation-induced biological effects in the thyroid tissue is, to a high degree, unknown an...

The receptor for the stem cell factor encoded by the c-kit proto-oncogene is expressed by a number of epithelial cells including thyrocytes. Since malignant transformation may be associated with loss of this receptor (melanoma and breast cancer), we have analyzed its expression in benign (38 cases) and malignant (31 cases) thyroid lesions. While low levels of c-kit are expressed in normal thyro...