Hypoxia promotes thyroid cancer progression through HIF1α/FGF11 feedback loop.

Hypoxia is an important cause of cervical lymph nodes metastasis and recurrence of thyroid cancer, but its specific mechanism remains unclear. In the present study, we constructed a hypoxia model of thyroid cancer cells and explored the potential targets of hypoxia response through sequencing. The function and mechanism of the target protein were investigated in an in vitro cell model. We found that fibroblast growth factor 11 (FGF11), a member of the FGFs family, was upregulated in hypoxic thyroid cancer cells and thyroid cancer tissues. The knockdown of FGF11 blocked the promotion of hypoxia on the proliferation, migration and invasion of tumor cells. Importantly, FGF11 enhanced the stability of HIF1α through inhibiting its degradation in TPC-1 cells. under hypoxic condition, FGF11 formed a positive feedback loop with HIF1α to promote the growth and metastasis of thyroid cancer.

Risk Factors and Prediction Model for Lateral Lymph Node Metastasis of Papillary Thyroid Carcinoma in Children and Adolescents.

PURPOSE: Papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC) in children and adolescents is prone to lateral lymph node metastasis (LNM), which is a high-risk factor for recurrence. However, few studies focused on identifying risk factors and establishing prediction models for lateral LNM of PTC in children and adolescents. PATIENTS AND METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed consecutive cases of children and adolescents with PTC undergoing thyroidectomy and cervical lymph node dissection between January 2009 and December 2019. The demographics and clinicopathologic features were collected and analyzed. RESULTS: A total of 102 children and adolescents with PTC were enrolled in our study; 51 of whom had lateral LNM (50%). After adjusting for other risk factors, the independent risk factors for lateral LNM were multifocality (odds ratio [OR]: 6.04; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.653-22.092; p=0.007), tumor size (OR: 1.752; 95% CI: 1.043-2.945; p=0.034), and the number of central LNM (OR: 1.23; 95% CI: 1.028-1.472; p=0.023). The formula of the combined predictor is: Multifocality + 0.31 × Tumor size + 0.115 × Number of central LNM. The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve of multifocality, tumor size, number of central LNM, and the combined predictor was 0.706, 0.762, 0.748, and 0.855, respectively. When the value of the combined predictor was ≥2.2744, lateral LNM could be predicted. The sensitivity and specificity of the predicted value were 82.4% and 74.5%, respectively. CONCLUSION: The independent risk factors for lateral LNM in children and adolescents with PTC were multifocality, tumor size, and the number of central LNM. The prediction model can better predict the presence of lateral LNM.