Comprehensive Assessment of mRNA Expression across a Large Cohort of Benign and Malignant Thyroid Tumours.

The presence of promoter (p) mutations in thyroid cancer have been associated with worse prognosis features, whereas the extent and meaning of the expression and activation of in thyroid tumours is still largely unknown. We analysed frozen samples from a series of benign and malignant thyroid tumours, displaying non-aggressive features and low mutational burden in order to evaluate the presence of p mutations and mRNA expression in these settings. In this series, p mutations were found in 2%, only in malignant cases, in larger cancers, and from older patients. mRNA expression was detected in both benign and malignant tumours, with increased frequencies in the malignant tumours with aggressive histotypes, larger tumours, and from older patients. In benign tumours, mRNA expression was found in 17% of the follicular thyroid adenoma (FTA) with increased levels of expression in smaller tumours and associated with the presence of thyroiditis. p mutations and mRNA expression are correlated with worse prognosis features in malignant thyroid tumours, whereas mRNA expression in the benign tumours is associated with the presence of thyroiditis.