BACKGROUND: The aim of the present study is to evaluate the incidence of papillary carcinoma in Graves' disease and it's clinical course. METHOD: We retrospectively studied 90 patients with Graves' disease operated on the last 13 years. RESULTS: Seven had papillary cancer (7,8%) and five were females. Only two of them had previous diagnosis. Total thyroidectomy was performed in five patients. Only one developed mediastinal metastasis. Average follow-up was 39 months, and all patients are alive and disease-free. CONCLUSIONS: Our data are in agreement with literature reports and we recommend early surgical treatment for patients with nodular diffuse toxic goiter.
Graves' disease; Papillary cancer; Thyroid neoplasms