Zeynel Abidin SAYINER, Mesut ÖZKAYA, Ersin AKARSU, Umut ELBOĞA, Azer ABİYEV

A Rare Cause of Uptake of Radioactive Iodine by Non-Lactating Breast Tissue in A Patient with Papillary Thyroid Carcinoma: Prolactinoma

We report a case of a post-menopausal woman who underwent total thyroidectomy due to papillary thyroid carcinoma followed by radioactive iodine therapy. After radioactive iodine therapy, total body scintigraphy (TBS) using radioactive iodine (I-131) was performed, and we observed uptake of I-131 by breast tissues. The scintigraphic and associated clinical characteristics of uptake of I-131 by breast tissues in a non-breastfeeding patient with thyroid cancer were unexpected findings. In this patient, elevated serum prolactin levels were documented at the time when the uptake of I-131 by the breast tissues was observed. We conducted hypophysis magnetic resonance imaging and detected a pituitary adenoma. Medical treatment with cabergoline was provided to this patient. When prolactin levels were normalized, uptake of I-131 by breast tissues was no longer evident on TBS.

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