Abstract

Introduction: Thyroid nodules or growth are quite common among people, and they are mostly benign lesions. Despite their non-malignant nature in general, some of them pose a serious threat of being cancerous. The cancerous nodules must be surgically removed, whereas the non-cancerous ones must avoid unnecessary surgical removal. The roadmap to differentiating between the malignant and benign thyroid growths lies in detailed history taking and clinical examination followed by appropriate imaging. Based on these findings, a decision to perform a fine needle biopsy is made, which may be complemented by molecular tests. Finally, the decision for surgical excision of the partial or complete thyroid gland is made.

Aim of Work: The aim of this study is to discuss the overview of thyroid nodules.

Materials and Methods: This review is a comprehensive search of PUBMED from the year 1997 to 2018.

Conclusion: Thyroid nodules are usually benign and do not require any treatment other than follow-up tests. Nevertheless, the small percentage of nodules that do turn out to be malignant is of concern. Clinical examination, history taking, and diagnostic imaging do help clinicians decide on the possible need for biopsy. Fine needle aspiration biopsy, along with molecular tests, further help clinicians decide on the possibility of surgically removing the thyroid gland. It's a battle between removing the gland that is malignant vs. not removing the gland that is benign.

Keywords: Thyroid Nodule; Serum thyrotropin; Calcitonin; FNAC; Papillary Thyroid Carcinoma; Medullary Thyroid Carcinoma; Thyroidectomy

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