Stable iodine intake is an essential preventive strategy against thyroid cancer following a nuclear disaster. However, the rate of stable iodine intake during pregnancy and thyroid outcomes among their children have remaifned unclear.

This observational study used data from a thyroid screening program at Research Institute of Radiation Safety for Disaster Recovery Support in Fukushima, Japan. The participants were children from Miharu Town, which implemented stable iodine intake during the Fukushima Nuclear Disaster, born between March 15, 2011 and March 31, 2012. Thyroid ultrasound results were stratified according to stable iodine intake.

This study included 86 children born after the disaster. A total of 34.9% (30 of 86) of their mothers reported taking stable iodine during pregnancy. As for thyroid screening outcomes, none of the children required detailed thyroid examination.

The intake rate of stable iodine during pregnancy was about 1/3 within the traceable municipality after the Fukushima Nuclear Disaster, which was lower than the previously reported number of 63.5% among children. Awareness-raising and effective communication toward pregnant women would be important for nuclear disaster preparedness. There were no participants who required further thyroid examination in this study.

Ectopic thyroid tissue in the submandibular region is exceptionally rare. Nevertheless, the treating physician should consider this condition within the differential diagnosis of a submandibular mass.

Case report of ectopic thyroid tissue presenting as a submandibular mass in a patient with hyperthyroidism, together with a review of the English-literature concerning ectopic thyroid tissue.

To our knowledge, this is the first report of ectopic thyroid tissue presenting as a submandibular mass and causing hyperthyroidism. Removal of the submandibular mass resulted in normalisation of thyroid function, and subsequent reduction in the patient's antithyroid medication dosage. Ectopic thyroid tissue should be suspected in any patient with a submandibular mass. Prior to resection of such a lesion, it is essential to ensure that normal, functioning thyroid tissue is present elsewhere. Ectopic thyroid tissue can also present with pathology similar to that affecting the normal thyroid gland.

We describe the first published case of papillary thyroid carcinoma metastatic to the temporal bone.

A 64-year-old woman presented with a large left temporal bone mass centred in the jugular foramen, initially thought to be a paraganglioma or schwannoma. She was simultaneously being investigated for a left-sided thyroid nodule, which was found to be unremarkable on repeated fine needle aspiration cytology. A biopsy of the temporal bone mass indicated that it was of thyroid origin. The patient underwent total thyroidectomy, which enabled a final diagnosis of follicular-variant papillary thyroid carcinoma with metastasis to the temporal bone.

Although biopsy is not the usual management for many types of temporal bone mass, pathological investigation is recommended if the tumour has an atypical growth rate, location, spread and/or radiological features. Metastasis of papillary thyroid carcinoma to the skull base is extremely rare, and correct diagnosis is essential in order to pursue an effective treatment plan.