Current Approaches and Challenging Issues in Paediatric Thyroid Carcinoma 

 

Current Approaches and Challenging Issues in Paediatric Thyroid Carcinoma Special Collection


Thyroid carcinoma in children and adolescents may be associated with predisposing risk factors and may present across a broad spectrum of clinical behaviour. A stratified approach to the diagnostic evaluation, therapeutic and follow-up plan is necessary to optimise outcome and reduce the risk for complications. The majority of paediatric patients with thyroid carcinoma are treated with surgery alone or with the addition of radioiodine therapy. In select patients with progressive disease that is not amenable to surgical resection, systemic therapy may be considered.  

In this European Thyroid Journal Special Collection, we offer a series of review articles on the current approach and on-going challenges in the evaluation and treatment of thyroid carcinoma. The new WHO classification of thyroid tumours and the paediatric Bethesda system for reporting thyroid cytopathology will be reviewed and incorporated with a review of imaging, surgical, and non-surgical treatment modalities. We will discuss the risk and benefits associated with each aspect of care. 

In addition to invited reviews, we welcome submissions of literature reviews on topics on paediatric thyroid carcinoma. If you are interested in submitting a complementary paper to this collection, please get in touch with your proposal: etj@bioscientifica.com.

 

Collection Editors

 

Professor Marek Niedziela

Professor Marek Niedziela, MD, PhD
Professor Niedziela is a physician, specialist in paediatrics and endocrinology, a full professor and graduate of Poznan University of Medical Sciences (PUMS), and since 2004, the Head of the Department of Paediatric Endocrinology and Rheumatology at the Institute of Paediatrics of the PUMS. His main areas of scientific and clinical interest are thyroid diseases in children, in particular thyroid nodular disease (genetically determined multinodular goiter - DICER1 syndrome, hot nodules and thyroid cancer) and autoimmune thyroid diseases.

He is a member of several scientific societies: Polish Society for Paediatric Endocrinology and Diabetology – PTEIDD, Polish Society of Endocrinology, European Society For Paediatric Endocrinology (ESPE), European Society of Endocrinology (ESE) and the European Thyroid Association (ETA), in which he currently holds the positions: co-chair of the ESPE Rare Disease Advisory Committee and ESPE representative to the ESE Rare Disease Committee. Since 1st January 2022, the Department of Paediatric Endocrinology and Rheumatology of the Karol Jonscher Clinical Hospital UMP has been a member of Endo-ERN, a European network of centers for rare endocrine diseases, and Professor Niedziela is currently the ESPE representative on the Endo-ERN Scientific Advisory Board. Since 1st January 2024 Professor Niedziela has been the Associate Editor of the European Thyroid Journal (section on paediatric thyroidology), the official journal of the European Thyroid Association. Professor Niedziela has been repeatedly awarded for his scientific work by the Rector of the UMP, the Minister of Health and the PTEIDD. By order of the President of the Republic of Poland on April 6, 2021, he was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Order of Polonia Restituta for outstanding contributions to health care and for achievements in medical science. 

Professor Hanneke M van Santen

Professor Hanneke M van Santen

HM van Santen is paediatric endocrinologist, clinical scientist, at the Wilhelmina Children’s Hospital and at the Princess Máxima Center for Paediatric Oncology and full professor at the University Utrecht, The Netherlands. She is highly specialized in the endocrine consequences of childhood cancer treatment, in paediatric thyroid cancer and in childhood craniopharyngioma, including acquired hypothalamic dysfunction. 
Dr van Santen chairs the European Recommendation for Paediatric Thyroid Cancer and of the European Registry for Differentiated Thyroid Cancer as well as the International Guideline Harmonization Groups (IGHG) for thyroid disorders and for hypothalamic-pituitary disorders, including GH safety, in children with or after treatment for cancer.  In addition, she is the SIOPe craniopharyngioma working group chair.  
Her research program focusses on the endocrine effects of childhood cancer treatment, with special interest for the thyroid gland, the pituitary gland, the hypothalamus and hypothalamic obesity, aiming to preserve an intact endocrine system in children with cancer enabling normal growth and development of the child during and after childhood cancer treatment.  

Dr Iñigo Landa PhD

Professor Andrew J Bauer

Dr. Bauer is the director of the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia’s Thyroid Center and a Professor of Pediatrics at the Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania. His research interests span the spectrum of thyroid disorders, with a focus on thyroid nodules, thyroid carcinoma, and thyroid transport and resistance syndromes. He serves as executive director of the Child and Adolescent Thyroid Consortium (www.ThyroidCATC.org), co-chair of the ATA pediatric thyroid cancer guidelines, and consultant for ThyCa, the DICER1 registry and the PHTS foundation.