Differentiated thyroid cancer: Growth factors, oncogenes and environmental influences

Abstract

The present data of growth factors, oncogenes, tumor-suppressor-genes and environmental factors can be summarized in thus: thyrotropin, growth factors and other hormones do increase thyrocyte growth and specific mutations of growth factor receptors (thyrotropin receptor [TSH-R], alpha subunit of hetero-trimeric transducer protein [GSP]) cause autonomously functioning thyroid tissue and differentiated thyroid carcinoma. In the thyroid, as in other organs, genes that are found to be differentially expressed between normal thyroid tissue and thyroid carcinomas can be used as targets for molecular-based diagnosis and therapy. Deregulation of tumor suppressor gene p53, however, parallels dedifferentiation of papillary and follicular thyroid cancer but has been found in few cases only. Iodide inhibiting thyrocyte growth will have to be investigated more intensively after sodium-iodide-symporter (NIS) has been cloned, and studies may now be available that could lead to form of conservative treatment in especially dedifferentiated thyroid cancer.

Keywords

• thyroid neoplasms
• growth substances
• oncogenes
• carcinoma
• papillary
• follicular