From Hashimoto's thyroiditis to B-cell lymphoma of thyroid

Lymphoma of the thyroid gland is an uncommon condition occurring primarily in older women. Most patients have a short history of an enlarging thyroid or a neck mass causing tracheal compression. There is also a strong associa tion between thyroid lymphoma and Hashimoto's thyroiditis. The diagnosis is established by biopsy. The conventional approach to treatment is combination of radiationtherapy w ith multiagent chemotherapy, while there is no significant role for extirpa tive surgery in the management of thyroid lymphoma. The prognosis of localised tumours (stage IE, Ann Arbor classification) is excellent. Extrathyroidal involvement (stage IIE-IVE) reduces the 5-year su rvival rate to about 70%, provided that current therapy regimens are respec ted. In this case report, the different stages of development from Hashimoto's t hyroiditis to thyroid lymphoma are demonstrated by histology. In a review o f the literature we discuss the diagnostic procedure and the current approa ch to treatment.