Thyroidectomy indications in surgical treatment of laryngeal carcinoma

Objectives:Surgery is the first choice at the surgical treatment of laryngeal carcinoma. It is advised in the literature to perform thyroidectomy in addition to laryngectomy if the primary tumor advances to subglottic region or invades extralaryngeal tissues. But, hypothyroidism may be established especially after radiotheraphy. We aimed to evaluate thyroidectomy indications during laryngeal surgery under the guidance of literature.Methods:Invasion of thyroid gland from the primary tumor has been examined from the medical records of 44 patients who had been operated because of laryngeal carcinoma at Haydarpafla Numune Education and Training Hospital between February 2002 and February 2007.Results:Only, 1 patient had thyroid gland invasion. The TNM status of the patient was T4aN3, stage 4b with a 10 mm subglottic extension.Conclusion: Thyroidectomy must be performed during laryngeal surgery only at the specific cases carrying the criteria of having subglottic and transglottic extension of the primary tumor, having thyroid gland mass with the palpation, and the tumors invading thyroid cartilage.