Chondrosarcoma metastasis in the thyroid gland: a case report

INTRODUCTION Chondrosarcoma metastases in the thyroid gland are exceptional. To the best of our knowledge, only two cases have been previously reported in the literature. Here we report the third case. CASE PRESENTATION We report the case of a 51-year-old Arab woman who presented in 2011 with a diaphyseal chondrosarcoma of her right tibia treated by surgery. In the last quarter of 2013, she presented a hard mass in her thyroid gland with dyspnea and a right laryngeal paresis. She underwent a debulking surgery with tracheostomy in order to prevent difficulty in respiration. The final pathology revealed the diagnosis of a chondrosarcoma metastasis within her thyroid gland. She died several days later. CONCLUSIONS Even if primary and metastatic chondrosarcomas of the thyroid gland are exceptional, they should be considered in the differential diagnosis of thyroid gland masses. The prognosis is poor but surgery may help preserve quality of life.