Composition and relation with the surrounding tissue
The consistency of papillary and follicular carcinoma is hard or firm. These tumors are dull to percussion and have no bruit. On swallowing, the mass of papillary carcinoma and the follicular carcinoma moves up and down, which means that there is no attachment to the surrounding tissue. Enlarged lymph nodes do not move upon swallowing, and when the examiner manipulates them, they move in a horizontal direction. Anaplastic carcinoma is hard, and the temperature of the skin is normal (unlike toxic adenomas). The color of the overlying skin might be red to blue due to the infiltration of the veins, which blocks the venous drainage.