Is Desmoplastic Stromal Reaction Useful to Modulate Lymph Node Dissection in Sporadic Medullary Thyroid Carcinoma?

The oncologic benefit of lateral neck dissection (LND) during index operation for sporadic medullary thyroid carcinoma (MTC) basing on basal calcitonin (bCT) levels has been questioned due to the potential post-operative complications. This study aims to evaluate desmoplastic reaction (DSR), as predictor of nodal metastases, for definition of surgical strategy. Data from pathological report of MTC after operations between 1997 and 2022 were collected. The primary endpoint of the study was evaluating the risk factors for nodal metastases. The secondary endpoints analyzed the correlations between DSR and nodal metastases and the sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value (PPV) and negative predictive value (NPV) of DSR for nodal metastases.