Diagnosis of anaplastic thyroid carcinoma on fine needle aspiration cytology - A rare case report

Anaplastic thyroid carcinoma [ATC] is a rare highly malignant tumor that arises from the follicular cells of the thyroid gland. It accounts for 1% to 2% of all thyroid carcinomas and patients with ATC uniformly have a poor prognosis. Majority of ATCs show spindle cell, giant cell and squamoid cell patterns; these 3 subtypes frequently coexist and they are not predictive of the patient’s outcome. Patients often present at an advanced stage, making curative surgical resection not feasible. Recognizing the cytological finding of the ATC and making the prompt and proper cytological diagnosis are helpful to determine the treatment plan for the patients who suffer with this entity.