RELATION OF THYROID NEOPLASMS TO HASHIMOTO DISEASE OF THE THYROID GLAND

THE SIMULTANEOUS occurrence of a neoplasm and Hashimoto disease (Hashimoto "thyroiditis," lymphadenoid goiter, struma lymphomatosa) in a thyroid gland has been noted infrequently. In a study concerned primarily with the clinical aspects and pathogenesis of various types of thyroiditis, a significant statistical relation was found between malignant thyroid neoplasms and Hashimoto disease of the thyroid gland. Thirty-seven malignant neoplasms were observed in 302 glands which also displayed the characteristic lesions of Hashimoto disease, a frequency which would occur by chance less than 1 time in 1,000.¹ The present study was concerned with 73 patients who had benign or malignant thyroid epithelial neoplasms associated with Hashimoto disease of the thyroid gland. Included in the study for comparative purposes were 207 patients who had only benign or malignant thyroid epithelial neoplasms and 205 patients who had Hashimoto disease without thyroid neoplasms (Table 1). All patients were observed during the last 10