Jaw metastasis from follicular carcinoma of thyroid gland simulating ameloblastoma

Abstract

Among the malignant tumours of the oral cavity which comprise 5-6 per cent of all malignant growths in the body, primary tumour is much more common than the secondary one. Some of these rare secondary tumours may occur at the jaw and primary jaw tumour is usually diagnosed clinically. Definitive diagnosis can only be made by microscopic examination and careful search for the primary site. The authors have studied one case of follicular carcinoma of the thyroid gland with metastasis to the mandible while the primary site was still silent and the clinical diagnosis was ameloblastoma of the mandible. To our knowledge, this occurrence has never been described in Thai literature.