Surgical Treatment of Thyroidal Carcinomas: A Study of 885 Cases Observed in a 30-Year Period

The cases of carcinoma of the thyroid seen at the Mayo Clinic from 1926 through 1955 have been reviewed recently in detail. The study, started some years ago, was undertaken originally to determine the adequacy of the pathologic classification currently in use. The pathologic aspects, late survival rates, and some of the details of treatment have been reported. 6 In the present study, an attempt was made to evaluate in greater detail the surgical procedures in the hope of defining with greater confidence the extent of the surgical procedure indicated in the treatment of lesions of different types. Pathologic Classification The classification of the lesions in this series is shown in Table 1. The papillary carcinomas are well known and need not be discussed at length. The various histologic patterns, whether predominately papillary, mixed papillary and follicular, or follicular, have little bearing on treatment or ultimate outcome. The term "occult"