Ectopic thyroid tissue of nasopharynx is an uncommon phenomenon and papillary thyroid carcinoma arising from the tissue is extremely rare. The authors report a rare case of 16-year-old girl with papillary thyroid carcinoma of nasopharynx. Clinicians were ever confused by adenoid hypertrophy and solved the diagnostic dilemma by adequate examinations. In the case, we mainly emphasize that surgeons should be aware of and actively consider such a possibility of ectopic papillary thyroid carcinoma of nasopharynx in children and adolescents with long-term nasal obstruction, even if thyroid carcinoma is a rare tumor.