Less aggressive biologic behavior of thyroid cancer before the age of menopause implies that an estrogen-rich environment may alter the effects of initiating and promoting factors in carcinogenesis. The presence of estrogen receptor(ER) in
thyroid
tissues as breast cancers means hormone-dependent. But the receptors of these hormones in thyroid tissue have not been fully investigated, and it is still a matter of debate whether the ER is present in the thyroid tissue or not. We prospectively
studied these possibilities with an enzyme immunoassay using monoclonal antibodies against the human ER to find prognostic and pathophysiologic parameter of the thyroid diseases.
Thyroid gland specimens were obtained from 107 patients undergoing thyroidectomy form March to October 1990 at the deptartment of surgery, they were divide into normal and pathologic tissue according to the gross appearance and each 0.5~1 gm of
tissue
was immediately snap frozen in liquid nitrogen, and stored in vapor phase liquid nirtogen at -80℃. By using the ER-EIA monoclonal kit from Abbott Diagnostics, ER was measured within 2 weeks after operation.
The quantitative analysis of ER between the neoplstic thyroid gland and the normal thyroid showed no statistical differences. Also We could not find the statistical differences betweenmale and female, normal glands and neoplastic tissues in
female,
premenopause and postmenopause women in normal thyroid nor in neoplastic thyroid tissues. But the ER values of the normal thyroid tissues were higher in patients with malignant lesion than in patients with benign nodules. Of the neoplastic
thyroid
lesions of female patients, the ER values of the papillary cancer tissues were more significantly increased than the other benign nodules. Demonstration of the ER from the papillary cancer suggests that the role of estrogen to the thyroid gland,
directly or indirectly, might be influenced the carcinogensis of the thyroid gland, and further investigation is required to define the role of hormonal and sex steroids to the thyroid gland.
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