Comparative morphometric analysis of thyrocytes in a primary tumor and regional metastases in papillary thyroid gland cancer

OBJECTIVE: To perform a comparative analysis of thyrocyte nuclei and the aggregability degree in tumor cells in the thyroid gland with papillary cancer and in cervical lymph nodes with metastases. STUDY DESIGN: Thyrocytes in papillary cancer and those of cervical lymph nodes with its metastasis have been studied with the help of morphometry. RESULTS: As a result of mathematical transformation of the initial morphometric database, quantitative features of thyrocyte nuclei and aggregates characterizing the norm, papillary cancer and regional metastases were obtained. These features were united into 2 systems of decision criteria on the base of a set of quantitative features of thyrocyte nuclei and aggregates. Analysis was performed among the groups of comparison with the help of these systems. CONCLUSION: Malignant cells of the primary tumor have been shown to have evident quantitative features of nuclear atypia and a higher degree of aggregability compared with the norm. The differences between the quantitative features of nuclei and aggregates in malignant cells of the primary tumor in the thyroid gland and its metastases in cervical lymph nodes were less pronounced.