Management of a Thyroid Nodule in 2023 (Adults Only)

Fine-needle aspiration (FNA) is universally accepted as an initial procedure for evaluation of thyroid nodules. All thyroid nodules need to be assessed in order to detect the malignant ones, which are rare but with an increasing incidence in the United States and in Europe. Moreover, there have been significant advances in assessment of thyroid nodules in the last 25 years including standardization of thyroid cytology reports and radiology reports, better understanding of molecular profile of thyroid nodules, and tumor behavior. Therefore, the management of thyroid nodules has been modified and now is based on triplex algorithm taking into account the clinical data and especially the US findings, the cytological categorization and, when available, the ancillary testings. This chapter covers the preanalytical factors, diagnosis, and the management of thyroid nodules.