Questions about the paper ‘Papillary thyroid cancer in black thyroid: a case report and literature review’
We read the review by Kim et al. titled “Papillary thyroid cancer in black thyroid: a case report and literature review” (1) with great interest. This article reports on minocycline-induced black thyroid with lymph node metastasis and provides a valuable review of the literature. The importance of follow-up for patients with a long history of minocycline ingestion is emphasized.
We agree with most of the opinions in this review, but there are still a few questions that need to be answered.
Firstly, in the introduction section, it says “pigmentation can occur more frequently in patients who have taken minocycline for more than one year at cumulative doses of >100 g”. My question is whether supplementary material can be provided to prove this point. In fact, to our knowledge, no credible studies have unfolded regarding minocycline intake and timing with black thyroid. It is thus inappropriate to present in such an absolute way.
The second question concerns with the conclusion section, in which it says “In our case, black discoloration was also seemingly observed in the surrounding adipose tissue of the neck level IV. Pathologic examination identified brown pigmentation in the thyroid parenchyma, but not in the thyroid tumor, LNs, or surrounding adipose tissues”. The conclusion on “black discoloration in the surrounding adipose tissue” is ambiguous. Can the authors describe the surrounding adipose tissue of the neck level IV in detail, or provide the microscopic photos of the surrounding adipose tissue of it?
Acknowledgments
Funding: None.
Footnote
Provenance and Peer Review: This article was a standard submission to Gland Surgery. The article did not undergo external peer review.
Conflicts of Interest: Both authors have completed the ICMJE uniform disclosure form (available at https://gs.amegroups.com/article/view/10.21037/gs-23-96/coif). Both authors have no conflicts of interest to declare.
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References
- Kim MJ, Kang J, Kim BW, et al. Papillary thyroid cancer in black thyroid: a case report and literature review. Gland Surg 2023;12:302-8. [Crossref] [PubMed]
