Papillary thyroid carcinoma in patients with RET proto-oncogene germline mutation.
The occurrence of papillary thyroid carcinoma in patients with RET germline mutations has been described in only eight cases since 1993. We report three women with a RET germline mutation in exon 13 and 14, affecting codon 790, 791, and 804, respectively, who underwent prophylactic thyroidectomy at the age of 29, 39, and 24 years, respectively. Histologic examination revealed C-cell hyperplasia and a small medullary thyroid carcinoma in the first patient and no pathologic changes of the C-cells in either of the other patients. However, all patients had papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC). Concerning the frequency of PTC in patients with RET germline mutations who underwent surgery at our center (n = 104), it was found in 9.1% of all patients with RET mutation in codon 790, 791, and 804 (n = 33) but in none of the 104 patients with RET germline mutations not affecting codon 790, 791, or 804 (p = 0.0015). Our data and the data from the literature suggest a possible pathogenesis of PTC caused by exon 13 and 14 RET mutations that affect the intracellular domain of the encoded protein. Further investigation is necessary to confirm a potential pathogenetic role of exon 13 and 14 RET mutations with regard to the development of PTC.
Department of General, Visceral and Vascular Surgery, Martin-Luther-University Halle-Wittenberg, Halle, Germany. michael.brauckhoff@medizin.uni-halle.de
Michael
M
Brauckhoff
Oliver
O
Gimm
Raoul
R
Hinze
Jörg
J
Ukkat
Katrin
K
Brauckhoff
Henning
H
Dralle
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D002291:Carcinoma, Papillary / Q000235:genetics*; D002648:Child; D029721:Drosophila Proteins; D005260:Female; D018095:Germ-Line Mutation; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D000090063:Proto-Oncogene Mas; D011518:Proto-Oncogene Proteins / Q000235:genetics*; D051096:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-ret; D020794:Receptor Protein-Tyrosine Kinases / Q000235:genetics*; D013964:Thyroid Neoplasms / Q000235:genetics*
D029721:Drosophila Proteins; C000715470:MAS1 protein, human; D000090063:Proto-Oncogene Mas; D011518:Proto-Oncogene Proteins; D051096:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-ret; D020794:Receptor Protein-Tyrosine Kinases; C416649:Ret protein, Drosophila