Innocuous Accessory Thyroid Nodules

THIS STUDY was prompted by the emphasis which has been placed on so-called lateral aberrant thyroid tumors during the last 30 years or so and the relatively little attention that has been called to the innocuous nodules of thyroid tissue in the immediate vicinity of the thyroid gland itself. Because of this and the failure to clearly distinguish between the two entities, a good deal of confusion has arisen. Goss⁵ states, "Small detached portions of thyroid tissue are sometimes found in the vicinity of the lateral lobes or above the isthmus; they are called accessory thyroid glands (glandulae thyreoideae accessoriae)." Warren and Meissner¹⁵ state, "Aberrant thyroid tissue is sometimes found adjacent to the thyroid gland, particularly near the midline. Such aberrant thyroid tissue occurs in small nodules and shows a histologic structure similar to that of the main body of the thyroid."

Pathologists are quite familiar with the