Thyroid: anaplastic carcinoma: practice question

A ENT question in the style of the NEET PG paper. Answer it first, then read why the right option is right and why each of the others is wrong.

Try it

ENT · Thyroid: anaplastic carcinoma

Sample item

A 75-year-old has a rapidly enlarging hard neck mass with hoarseness and stridor. Biopsy shows undifferentiated spindle and giant cells. What is the prognosis?

Original practice item, not a recalled exam question. Nothing here is recorded.

The answer and the reasoning

B. Very poor with median survival of months

Anaplastic thyroid carcinoma is highly aggressive, does not take up radioiodine and usually presents with airway compromise. Treatment is mostly palliative, with tracheostomy and external radiotherapy, and survival is short.

Option by option

  • A. Excellent with a 95 percent cure

    Cure rates are poor, unlike differentiated cancer.

  • B. Very poor with median survival of months (correct)

    Correct. Anaplastic carcinoma has a very poor prognosis.

  • C. Good with radioiodine

    It does not respond to radioiodine.

  • D. Indolent behaviour

    It is rapidly progressive.

Source note: Original NextPrep sample item — pending expert review. This item is original practice material awaiting independent expert review, so confirm important facts in a standard textbook.

More ENT questions

Questions about this ENT question

What is the answer to this ENT question?

The best answer is B, Very poor with median survival of months. Anaplastic thyroid carcinoma is highly aggressive, does not take up radioiodine and usually presents with airway compromise.

Why is "Excellent with a 95 percent cure" not the answer?

Cure rates are poor, unlike differentiated cancer.

Why is "Good with radioiodine" not the answer?

It does not respond to radioiodine.

Why is "Indolent behaviour" not the answer?

It is rapidly progressive.

What concept does this question test?

It tests Thyroid: anaplastic carcinoma in ENT. Treatment is mostly palliative, with tracheostomy and external radiotherapy, and survival is short.

How hard is this question?

We tag it as an application question: it asks you to use a fact on a patient or a finding. The tag is our own editorial judgement, not an official difficulty rating, so read the reason for every option, not only the answer.

How should I study Thyroid: anaplastic carcinoma?

Learn tuning fork results and audiogram patterns by sketching them. Then use the flashcards and the other ENT questions on this site to test what stuck.

Is this a real NEET PG question?

No. It is an original practice item (editorial status: sample, version 1). NextPrep does not publish recalled or leaked questions, and independent faculty review of this item has not been completed yet, so confirm important facts in a standard textbook.