This thesis, describes investigations of the genetic background of a wide variety of rare endocrine tumors, including those of the thyroid, parathyroid, adrenal and paraganglia. In the first part,... Show moreThis thesis, describes investigations of the genetic background of a wide variety of rare endocrine tumors, including those of the thyroid, parathyroid, adrenal and paraganglia. In the first part, our studies focus on the role of molecular testing in diagnostics and treatment decision making in patients with DICER1 syndrome or advanced radioactive iodine refractory thyroid cancer. In the second part, we investigated the of genetic background of pediatric non-medullary thyroid carcinoma. In the third part we focused on genetic counseling in the following endocrine tumor predisposition syndromes: CDC73-related disorder, SDHA-associated paraganglioma and MEN2a syndrome. Our studies contributed to the debate on accurate estimation of disease penetrance. In order to provide answers to the questions - “Why do I have cancer? Are other relatives at risk? And if so, can we prevent cancer?” - patient- and family centered endocrine cancer care encourages active collaboration between the departments of endocrinology, oncology, surgery, pathology, chemistry, radiology, nuclear medicine and clinical genetics. Show less
