TheBRAFV600Emutation in papillary thyroid microcarcinoma: does the mutation have an impact on clinical outcome?

SummaryContext An activating mutation in the gene BRAF has been correlated with poorer prognosis and more aggressive clinical course in papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC). We therefore hypothesized that the good prognosis, high 5-year disease-free rate and high survival rate of patients with less aggressive papillary thyroid microcarcinoma (pT1aNo-x) would be associated with a lower incidence of the BRAFV600E mutation. Objectives To evaluate the frequency of the activating mutation BRAFV600E in low-risk papillary thyroid microcarcinoma (pT1aNo-x at the moment of diagnosis) and the association of the mutation with the clinical outcome in a retrospective analysis. Study Design BRAFV600E was characterized in 113 PTC patients diagnosed with pT1aNo-x (one PTC focus with a diameter