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DOI: 10.1055/s-0045-1809423
Iodine-Negative Rare Gluteal Muscle Metastasis of Papillary Thyroid Cancer: Detected by 68Ga-DOTATATE PET/MRI and 18F-FDG PET/CT
Abstract
The case presents a 57-year-old male with metastatic papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC) to the lymph nodes, lung, and mediastinum. Despite receiving multiple high-dose radioactive iodine (RAI) therapies, the patient's serum thyroglobulin levels continued to rise. The patient, who was unresponsive to RAI therapy, was being evaluated for suitability for 177Lu-DOTATATE therapy. Therefore, after the third high-dose treatment, simultaneous 68Ga-DOTATATE PET/MRI and 18F FDG PET/CT imaging were performed, revealing a painless mass in the left gluteal region. The gluteal mass was excised, and histopathology confirmed it as metastatic PTC. Muscle metastases are extremely rare for PTC. This case exemplifies the different levels of tumoral affinity shown by aggressive variants of PTC across three distinct imaging modalities: 68Ga-DOTATATE PET/MRI, 18F FDG PET/CT, and whole-body iodine scintigraphy.
Keywords
papillary thyroid carcinoma - gluteal muscles - RAI-refractory - 68Ga-DOTATATE PET/MRI - 18F-FDG PET/CTPublication History
Article published online:
03 June 2025
© 2025. The Author(s). This is an open access article published by Thieme under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, permitting unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction so long as the original work is properly cited. (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)
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