Ectopic thyroid gland simulating a submandibular tumor

(Editorial Comment: The reporters call our attention to a rare situation in which a lateral neck mass is a benign ectopic thyroid.) Ectopic thyroid is any thyroid tissue not located anterior to the second, third, and fourth tracheal rings along the midline of the ventral portion of the neck. Submandibular location of the thyroid gland is a very rare congenital anomaly1 that results from the failure of the primitive thyroid premordium to descend from the foramen cecum in the embryo. The ectopic thyroid may be mistaken for a lymphadenopathy or any other mass (depending on the localization, eg, lymphangioma, ranula, salivary gland tumor, dermoid cyst, lipoma, or thyroglossal duct cyst). Surgical removal of an ectopic thyroid may lead to profound hypothyroidism, unless thyroid hormone replacement therapy is initiated, because 70% of patients with displaced thyroids