Papillary thyroid carcinoma with pulmonary metastases in a child

Thyroid carcinoma is an uncommon disease in children, thus it is not always suspected early in the evaluation of a child with neck mass. Thyroid carcinoma in children can be treated effectively and has relatively good prognosis if diagnosed early. The lungs are the most common site for distant metastases and in many cases partial remission can be achieved with good quality of life. In this report we describe a child with bilateral neck masses diagnosed to have papillary thyroid carcinoma with neck and pulmonary metastases. This report aims to raise the physicians awareness of the disease in children. We review the diagnostic modalities and treatment of the disease in children.