Abstract

Objectives: To describe the clinical and subclinical characteristics of patients with thyroid carcinoma with tumor size ≤ 1cm (microcarcinoma). Methods: A description study of 303 patients with thyroid carcinoma with tumor size ≤ 1cm diagnosed with thyroid carcinoma through histopathological results after surgery. Results: The rate of microcarcinoma in thyroid cancer patients who had surgery was 48.87%. Popular in age < 55 at 77.6% and in female at 88.1%. Patients with microcarcinoma are mainly detected by routine physical examination with 78.22%. Most of the patients had normal TSH and FT4 with 94.39% and 89.77%. On ultrasonoghraphy, the average tumor size was 7,12 mm, the tumors were detected in the right lobe, size from 0.5-1 cm and ≥ 2 tumor accounted for 48,51%; 91,75% and 62,38%. Microcalcification accounts for 33.33%. TIRADS 4 and TIRADS 5 accounted for 98,68%. Fine needle aspiration cytology (FNA) diagnosis of cancer and suspicion of cancer with 88.12%. Invasion of thyroid capsule with 14,19%. Lymph node metastasis was found at 45.83%, central lymph node metastasis at 66.67%. The rate of cervical lymph node metastasis in the group with tumor size from 0.5 to 1 cm and the group with tumor size < 0.5 cm was not statistically significant with p = 0.283. Conclusion: Thyroid carcinoma with tumor size ≤ 1cm accounts for nearly half of thyroid cancers surgically. Most patients have no clinical symptoms. But there is not small percentage of patients presenting with thyroid capsular invasion and lymph node metastasis.