Incidence and Mortality

Estimated new cases and deaths from thyroid cancer in the United States in 2015:[1]

• New cases: 62,450.
• Deaths: 1,950.

Carcinoma of the thyroid gland is an uncommon cancer but is the most common malignancy of the endocrine system.[2] Differentiated tumors (papillary or follicular) are highly treatable and usually curable. Poorly differentiated tumors (medullary or anaplastic) are much less common, are aggressive, metastasize early, and have a much poorer prognosis. Thyroid cancer affects women more often than men and usually occurs in people between the ages of 25 and 65 years. The incidence of this malignancy has been increasing over the last decade. Thyroid cancer commonly presents as a cold nodule. The overall incidence of cancer in a cold nodule is 12% to 15%, but it is higher in people younger than 40 years and in people with calcifications present on preoperative ultrasonography.[3,4]

Risk Factors

Patients with a history of radiation administered in infancy and childhood for benign conditions of the head and neck, such as enlarged thymus, acne, or tonsillar or adenoidal enlargement, have an increased risk of cancer as well as other abnormalities of the thyroid gland. In this group of patients, malignancies of the thyroid gland first appear beginning as early as 5 years following radiation and may appear 20 or more years later.[5] Radiation exposure as a consequence of nuclear fallout has also been associated with a high risk of thyroid cancer, especially in children.[6-8] Other risk factors for the development of thyroid cancer include the following:[9]

• A history of goiter.
• Family history of thyroid disease.
• Female gender.
• Asian race.

Prognostic Factors

The prognosis for differentiated carcinoma is better for patients younger than 40 years without extracapsular extension or vascular invasion.[10-14] Age appears to be the single most important prognostic factor.[12] The prognostic significance of lymph node status is controversial. One retrospective surgical series of 931 previously untreated patients with differentiated thyroid cancer found that female gender, multifocality, and regional node involvement are favorable prognostic factors.[15] Adverse factors included age older than 45 years, follicular histology, primary tumor larger than 4 cm (T2–T3), extrathyroid extension (T4), and distant metastases.[15,16] Other studies, however, have shown that regional lymph node involvement had no effect [17,18] or even an adverse effect on survival.[13,14,19] Use of sentinel lymph node biopsy may aid in identifying patients with occult metastases who might benefit from central neck dissection.[20]

Related Summaries

Other PDQ summaries containing information related to thyroid cancer include the following:

• Genetics of Endocrine and Neuroendocrine Neoplasias
• Unusual Cancers of Childhood (childhood cancer of the thyroid)

References

1. American Cancer Society: Cancer Facts and Figures 2015. Atlanta, Ga: American Cancer Society, 2015. Available online. Last accessed July 1, 2015.
2. Hundahl SA, Fleming ID, Fremgen AM, et al.: A National Cancer Data Base report on 53,856 cases of thyroid carcinoma treated in the U.S., 1985-1995 [see comments] Cancer 83 (12): 2638-48, 1998. [PubMed: 9874472]
3. Tennvall J, Biörklund A, Möller T, et al.: Is the EORTC prognostic index of thyroid cancer valid in differentiated thyroid carcinoma? Retrospective multivariate analysis of differentiated thyroid carcinoma with long follow-up. Cancer 57 (7): 1405-14, 1986. [PubMed: 3948123]
4. Khoo ML, Asa SL, Witterick IJ, et al.: Thyroid calcification and its association with thyroid carcinoma. Head Neck 24 (7): 651-5, 2002. [PubMed: 12112538]
5. Carling T, Udelsman R: Thyroid tumors. In: DeVita VT Jr, Lawrence TS, Rosenberg SA: Cancer: Principles and Practice of Oncology. 9th ed. Philadelphia, Pa: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, 2011, pp 1457-72.
6. Pacini F, Vorontsova T, Molinaro E, et al.: Prevalence of thyroid autoantibodies in children and adolescents from Belarus exposed to the Chernobyl radioactive fallout. Lancet 352 (9130): 763-6, 1998. [PubMed: 9737280]
7. Cardis E, Kesminiene A, Ivanov V, et al.: Risk of thyroid cancer after exposure to 131I in childhood. J Natl Cancer Inst 97 (10): 724-32, 2005. [PubMed: 15900042]
8. Tronko MD, Howe GR, Bogdanova TI, et al.: A cohort study of thyroid cancer and other thyroid diseases after the chornobyl accident: thyroid cancer in Ukraine detected during first screening. J Natl Cancer Inst 98 (13): 897-903, 2006. [PubMed: 16818853]
9. Iribarren C, Haselkorn T, Tekawa IS, et al.: Cohort study of thyroid cancer in a San Francisco Bay area population. Int J Cancer 93 (5): 745-50, 2001. [PubMed: 11477590]
10. Grant CS, Hay ID, Gough IR, et al.: Local recurrence in papillary thyroid carcinoma: is extent of surgical resection important? Surgery 104 (6): 954-62, 1988. [PubMed: 3194847]
11. Sanders LE, Cady B: Differentiated thyroid cancer: reexamination of risk groups and outcome of treatment. Arch Surg 133 (4): 419-25, 1998. [PubMed: 9565123]
12. Mazzaferri EL: Treating differentiated thyroid carcinoma: where do we draw the line? Mayo Clin Proc 66 (1): 105-11, 1991. [PubMed: 1988750]
13. Staunton MD: Thyroid cancer: a multivariate analysis on influence of treatment on long-term survival. Eur J Surg Oncol 20 (6): 613-21, 1994. [PubMed: 7995409]
14. Mazzaferri EL, Jhiang SM: Long-term impact of initial surgical and medical therapy on papillary and follicular thyroid cancer. Am J Med 97 (5): 418-28, 1994. [PubMed: 7977430]
15. Shah JP, Loree TR, Dharker D, et al.: Prognostic factors in differentiated carcinoma of the thyroid gland. Am J Surg 164 (6): 658-61, 1992. [PubMed: 1463119]
16. Andersen PE, Kinsella J, Loree TR, et al.: Differentiated carcinoma of the thyroid with extrathyroidal extension. Am J Surg 170 (5): 467-70, 1995. [PubMed: 7485734]
17. Coburn MC, Wanebo HJ: Prognostic factors and management considerations in patients with cervical metastases of thyroid cancer. Am J Surg 164 (6): 671-6, 1992. [PubMed: 1463122]
18. Voutilainen PE, Multanen MM, Leppäniemi AK, et al.: Prognosis after lymph node recurrence in papillary thyroid carcinoma depends on age. Thyroid 11 (10): 953-7, 2001. [PubMed: 11716043]
19. Sellers M, Beenken S, Blankenship A, et al.: Prognostic significance of cervical lymph node metastases in differentiated thyroid cancer. Am J Surg 164 (6): 578-81, 1992. [PubMed: 1463103]
20. Cunningham DK, Yao KA, Turner RR, et al.: Sentinel lymph node biopsy for papillary thyroid cancer: 12 years of experience at a single institution. Ann Surg Oncol 17 (11): 2970-5, 2010. [PubMed: 20552407]
21. Lennard CM, Patel A, Wilson J, et al.: Intensity of vascular endothelial growth factor expression is associated with increased risk of recurrence and decreased disease-free survival in papillary thyroid cancer. Surgery 129 (5): 552-8, 2001. [PubMed: 11331447]
22. van Herle AJ, van Herle KA: Thyroglobulin in benign and malignant thyroid disease. In: Falk SA: Thyroid Disease: Endocrinology, Surgery, Nuclear Medicine, and Radiotherapy. Philadelphia, Pa: Lippincott-Raven, 1997, pp 601-618.
23. Ruiz-Garcia J, Ruiz de Almodóvar JM, Olea N, et al.: Thyroglobulin level as a predictive factor of tumoral recurrence in differentiated thyroid cancer. J Nucl Med 32 (3): 395-8, 1991. [PubMed: 2005446]
24. Duren M, Siperstein AE, Shen W, et al.: Value of stimulated serum thyroglobulin levels for detecting persistent or recurrent differentiated thyroid cancer in high- and low-risk patients. Surgery 126 (1): 13-9, 1999. [PubMed: 10418587]
25. Godballe C, Asschenfeldt P, Jørgensen KE, et al.: Prognostic factors in papillary and follicular thyroid carcinomas: p53 expression is a significant indicator of prognosis. Laryngoscope 108 (2): 243-9, 1998. [PubMed: 9473076]

References

1. LiVolsi VA: Pathology of thyroid disease. In: Falk SA: Thyroid Disease: Endocrinology, Surgery, Nuclear Medicine, and Radiotherapy. Philadelphia, Pa: Lippincott-Raven, 1997, pp 127-175.
2. Kushchayeva Y, Duh QY, Kebebew E, et al.: Comparison of clinical characteristics at diagnosis and during follow-up in 118 patients with Hurthle cell or follicular thyroid cancer. Am J Surg 195 (4): 457-62, 2008. [PubMed: 18070728]
3. Mills SC, Haq M, Smellie WJ, et al.: Hürthle cell carcinoma of the thyroid: Retrospective review of 62 patients treated at the Royal Marsden Hospital between 1946 and 2003. Eur J Surg Oncol 35 (3): 230-4, 2009. [PubMed: 18722077]

Definitions of TNM

The American Joint Committee on Cancer (AJCC) has designated staging by TNM classification to define thyroid cancer.[1]

Papillary and Follicular Thyroid Cancer

Stage I papillary carcinoma is localized to the thyroid gland. In as many as 50% of cases, there are multifocal sites of papillary adenocarcinomas throughout the gland. Most papillary cancers have some follicular elements, and these may sometimes be more numerous than the papillary formations, but this does not change the prognosis. The 10-year survival rate is slightly better for patients younger than 45 years than for patients older than 45 years.

Stage II papillary carcinoma is defined as either: (1) tumor that has spread distantly in patients younger than 45 years, or (2) tumor that is larger than 2 cm but 4 cm or smaller and is limited to the thyroid gland in patients older than 45 years. In as many as 50% to 80% of cases, there are multifocal sites of papillary adenocarcinomas throughout the gland. Most papillary cancers have some follicular elements, and these may sometimes be more numerous than the papillary formations, but this does not appear to change the prognosis.

Stage III is papillary carcinoma in patients older than 45 years that is larger than 4 cm and is limited to the thyroid or with minimal extrathyroid extension, or positive lymph nodes limited to the pretracheal, paratracheal, or prelaryngeal/Delphian nodes. Papillary carcinoma that has invaded adjacent cervical tissue has a worse prognosis than tumors confined to the thyroid.

Stage IV is papillary carcinoma in patients older than 45 years with extension beyond the thyroid capsule to the soft tissues of the neck, cervical lymph node metastases, or distant metastases. The lungs and bone are the most frequent distant sites of spread, though such distant spread is rare in this type of thyroid cancer. Papillary carcinoma more frequently metastasizes to regional lymph nodes than to distant sites. The prognosis for patients with distant metastases is poor.

Stage I follicular carcinoma is localized to the thyroid gland. Follicular thyroid carcinoma must be distinguished from follicular adenomas, which are characterized by their lack of invasion through the capsule into the surrounding thyroid tissue. While follicular cancer has a good prognosis, it is less favorable than that of papillary carcinoma. The 10-year survival is better for patients with follicular carcinoma without vascular invasion than it is for patients with vascular invasion.

Stage II follicular carcinoma is defined as either tumor that has spread distantly in patients younger than 45 years, or tumor that is larger than 2 cm but 4 cm or smaller and is limited to the thyroid gland in patients older than 45 years. The presence of lymph node metastases does not worsen the prognosis among patients younger than 45 years. Follicular thyroid carcinoma must be distinguished from follicular adenomas, which are characterized by their lack of invasion through the capsule into the surrounding thyroid tissue. While follicular cancer has a good prognosis, it is less favorable than that of papillary carcinoma; the 10-year survival is better for patients with follicular carcinoma without vascular invasion than for patients with vascular invasion.

Stage III is follicular carcinoma in patients older than 45 years, larger than 4 cm and limited to the thyroid or with minimal extrathyroid extension, or positive lymph nodes limited to the pretracheal, paratracheal, or prelaryngeal/Delphian nodes. Follicular carcinoma invading cervical tissue has a worse prognosis than tumors confined to the thyroid gland. The presence of vascular invasion is an additional poor prognostic factor. Metastases to lymph nodes do not worsen the prognosis in patients younger than 45 years.

Stage IV is follicular carcinoma in patients older than 45 years with extension beyond the thyroid capsule to the soft tissues of the neck, cervical lymph node metastases, or distant metastases. The lungs and bone are the most frequent sites of spread. Follicular carcinomas more commonly have blood vessel invasion and tend to metastasize hematogenously to the lungs and to the bone rather than through the lymphatic system. The prognosis for patients with distant metastases is poor.

Hürthle cell carcinoma is a variant of follicular carcinoma with a similar prognosis and should be treated in the same way as equivalent stage non-Hürthle cell follicular carcinoma.

Medullary Thyroid Cancer

Several staging systems have been employed to correlate extent of disease with long-term survival in medullary thyroid cancer. The clinical staging system of the AJCC correlates survival to size of the primary tumor, presence or absence of lymph node metastases, and presence or absence of distance metastasis. Patients with the best prognosis are those who are diagnosed by provocative screening, prior to the appearance of palpable disease.[3]

Clinically occult disease detected by provocative biochemical screening.

Tumor smaller than 2 cm.

Tumor larger than 2 cm but 4 cm or smaller with no metastases or larger than 4 cm with minimal extrathyroid extension.

Tumor of any size with metastases limited to the pretracheal, paratracheal, or prelaryngeal/Delphian lymph nodes.

Stage IV medullary thyroid cancer is divided into the following categories:

• Stage IVA (moderately advanced with or without lymph node metastases [for T4a] but without distant metastases).
• Stage IVB (very advanced with or without lymph node metastases but no distant metastases).
• Stage IVC (distant metastases).

Medullary carcinoma usually presents as a hard mass and is often accompanied by blood vessel invasion. Medullary thyroid cancer occurs in two forms, sporadic and familial. In the sporadic form, the tumor is usually unilateral. In the familial form, the tumor is almost always bilateral. In addition, the familial form may be associated with benign or malignant tumors of other endocrine organs, commonly referred to as the multiple endocrine neoplasia syndromes (MEN 2A or MEN 2B).

In these syndromes, there is an association with pheochromocytoma of the adrenal gland and parathyroid hyperplasia. Medullary carcinoma usually secretes calcitonin, a hormonal marker for the tumor, and may be detectable in blood even when the tumor is clinically occult. Metastases to regional lymph nodes are found in about 50% of cases. Prognosis depends on extent of disease at presentation, presence or absence of regional lymph node metastases, and completeness of the surgical resection.[4]

Family members should be screened for calcitonin elevation to identify individuals who are at risk of developing familial medullary thyroid cancer. MEN 2A gene carrier status can be more accurately determined by analysis of mutations in the RET gene. Whereas modest el mutation is the optimal approach in evaluating MEN 2A. All patients with medullary carcinoma of the thyroid (whether familial or sporadic) should be tested for RET mutations, and, if they are positive, family members should also be tested. Family members who are gene carriers should undergo prophylactic thyroidectomy at an early age.[5-7]

Anaplastic Thyroid Cancer

No generally accepted staging system is available for anaplastic thyroid cancer. All patients are considered to have stage IV disease.

Undifferentiated (anaplastic) carcinomas are highly malignant cancers of the thyroid. They may be subclassified as small cell or large cell carcinomas. Both grow rapidly and extend to structures beyond the thyroid. Both small cell and large cell carcinomas present as hard, ill-defined masses, often with extension into the structures surrounding the thyroid. Small cell anaplastic thyroid carcinoma must be carefully distinguished from lymphoma. This tumor usually occurs in an older age group and is characterized by extensive local invasion and rapid progression. Five-year survival with this tumor is poor. Death is usually from uncontrolled local cancer in the neck, usually within months of diagnosis.[8]

References

1. Thyroid. In: Edge SB, Byrd DR, Compton CC, et al., eds.: AJCC Cancer Staging Manual. 7th ed. New York, NY: Springer, 2010, pp 87-96.
2. Haigh PI, Urbach DR: The treatment and prognosis of Hürthle cell follicular thyroid carcinoma compared with its non-Hürthle cell counterpart. Surgery 138 (6): 1152-7; discussion 1157-8, 2005. [PubMed: 16360403]
3. Colson YL, Carty SE: Medullary thyroid carcinoma. Am J Otolaryngol 14 (2): 73-81, 1993 Mar-Apr. [PubMed: 8097904]
4. Carling T, Udelsman R: Thyroid tumors. In: DeVita VT Jr, Lawrence TS, Rosenberg SA: Cancer: Principles and Practice of Oncology. 9th ed. Philadelphia, Pa: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, 2011, pp 1457-72.
5. Lips CJ, Landsvater RM, Höppener JW, et al.: Clinical screening as compared with DNA analysis in families with multiple endocrine neoplasia type 2A. N Engl J Med 331 (13): 828-35, 1994. [PubMed: 7915822]
6. Decker RA, Peacock ML, Borst MJ, et al.: Progress in genetic screening of multiple endocrine neoplasia type 2A: is calcitonin testing obsolete? Surgery 118 (2): 257-63; discussion 263-4, 1995. [PubMed: 7638742]
7. Skinner MA, Moley JA, Dilley WG, et al.: Prophylactic thyroidectomy in multiple endocrine neoplasia type 2A. N Engl J Med 353 (11): 1105-13, 2005. [PubMed: 16162881]
8. Neff RL, Farrar WB, Kloos RT, et al.: Anaplastic thyroid cancer. Endocrinol Metab Clin North Am 37 (2): 525-38, xi, 2008. [PubMed: 18502341]

Total Thyroidectomy

This procedure is advocated because of the high incidence of multicentric involvement of both lobes of the gland and the possibility of dedifferentiation of any residual tumor to the anaplastic cell type.

From the National Cancer Center Data Base (NCDB) registry of 52,173 patients, 43,227 (82.9%) underwent total thyroidectomy, and 8,946 (17.1%) underwent lobectomy. For a papillary thyroid cancer measuring less than 1 cm, the extent of surgery did not impact recurrence or survival (P = .24 and P = .83, respectively).[8] For tumors measuring 1 cm or larger, lobectomy resulted in higher risk of recurrence and death (P = .04 and P = .009, respectively). To minimize the influence of larger tumors, 1-cm to 2-cm lesions were examined separately; lobectomy again resulted in a higher risk of recurrence and death (P = .04 and P = .04, respectively). In this study, total thyroidectomy resulted in lower recurrence rates and improved survival for patients with papillary thyroid cancer measuring 1 cm or larger compared with lobectomy.[8][Level of evidence: 3iiA]

Furthermore, in a pattern of care study, using the NCDB registry from 1985 to 2003, 57,243 papillary thyroid cancer patients with tumors measuring 1 cm or larger underwent total thyroidectomy or lobectomy. Trends in the extent of surgery were examined for patients with papillary thyroid cancer over 2 decades. Logistic regression was used to identify factors that predict the use of total thyroidectomy compared with lobectomy. Use of total thyroidectomy increased from 70.8% in 1985 to 90.4% in 2003 (P < .0001). Patients treated at high-volume medical facilities or academic centers were more likely to undergo total thyroidectomy than were patients examined at low-volume medical facilities or community hospitals (P < .0001).[9][Level of evidence: 3i]

The objective of surgery is to completely remove the primary tumor, while minimizing treatment-related morbidity, and to guide postoperative treatment with radioactive iodine (RAI). The goal of RAI is to ablate the remnant thyroid tissue to improve the specificity of thyroglobulin assays, which allows the detection of persistent disease by follow-up whole-body scanning. For patients undergoing RAI, removal of all normal thyroid tissue is an important surgical objective. Additionally, for accurate long-term surveillance, RAI whole-body scanning and measurement of serum thyroglobulin are affected by residual, normal thyroid tissue, and in these situations, near total or total thyroidectomy is required. This approach facilitates follow-up thyroid scanning.

I¹³¹: Studies have shown that a postoperative course of therapeutic (ablative) doses of I¹³¹ results in a decreased recurrence rate among high-risk patients with papillary and follicular carcinomas.[4] It may be given in addition to exogenous thyroid hormone but is not considered routine.[10] Patients presenting with papillary thyroid microcarcinomas (tumors <10 mm) have an excellent prognosis when treated surgically, and additional therapy with I¹³¹ would not be expected to improve the prognosis.[11]

Lobectomy

Thyroid lobectomy alone may be sufficient treatment for small (<1 cm), low-risk, unifocal, intrathyroidal papillary carcinomas in the absence of prior head and neck irradiation or radiologically or clinically involved cervical nodal metastases. This procedure is associated with a lower incidence of complications, but approximately 5% to 10% of patients will have a recurrence in the thyroid following lobectomy.[12] Patients younger than 45 years will have the longest follow-up period and the greatest opportunity for recurrence. Follicular thyroid cancer commonly metastasizes to lungs and bone; with a remnant lobe in place, use of I¹³¹ as ablative therapy is compromised. Abnormal regional lymph nodes should be biopsied at the time of surgery. Recognized nodal involvement should be removed at initial surgery, but selective node removal can be performed, and radical neck dissection is usually not required. This results in a decreased recurrence rate but has not been shown to improve survival.

Following the surgical procedure, patients should receive postoperative treatment with exogenous thyroid hormone in doses sufficient to suppress thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH); studies have shown a decreased incidence of recurrence when TSH is suppressed.

I¹³¹: Studies have shown that a postoperative course of therapeutic (ablative) doses of I¹³¹ results in a decreased recurrence rate among high-risk patients with papillary and follicular carcinomas.[4] For optimal treatment with RAI, total thyroidectomy is recommended with minimal thyroid remnant remaining. With a large thyroid remnant, a low thyroglobulin level cannot be achieved, which increases the chance of requiring multiple doses of RAI.

Consideration of RAI for remnant ablation is based on pathological risk features including:

• Evaluation of the size of the primary tumor.
• The presence of lymphovascular invasion.
• Capsule invasion.
• The number of involved lymph nodes.

RAI may be given with one of two methods of thyrotropin stimulation: withdrawal of thyroid hormone or recombinant human thyrotropin (rhTSH). Administered rhTSH maintains quality of life and reduces the radiation dose delivered to the body compared with thyroid hormone withdrawal.[13] Patients presenting with papillary thyroid microcarcinomas (tumors <10 mm), which are considered to be very low risk, have an excellent prognosis when treated surgically, and additional therapy with I¹³¹ would not be expected to improve the prognosis.[11]

The role of RAI in low-risk patients is not clear because disease-free survival (DFS) or overall survival (OS) benefits have not been demonstrated. One study reviewed 1,298 patients from the French Thyroid Cancer Registry.[14] Patients were identified as having low-risk papillary or follicular cancer as they are defined by the American Thyroid Association and the European Thyroid Association criteria:

• Complete tumor resection.
• Multifocal pT1 <1 cm.
• pT1 >1 cm.
• pT2, pN0, pM0 (American Joint Committee on Cancer/Union Internationale Contre le Cancer [AJCC/UICC]) corresponds to stage I for patients younger than 45 years old.
• pT2, pN0, pM0 (AJCC/UICC) corresponds to stages 1 and 2 for patients older than 45 years old.
• pT1 and pT2 without lymph node dissection (Nx).

Of the 1,298 patients, 911 patients received RAI after surgery, and 387 patients did not receive RAI after surgery. Follow-up period was 10.3 years; in multivariate analyses, there were no differences in OS (P = .243) or DFS (P = .2659), according to RAI use.[14]

Long-term complications of RAI using I¹³¹ include second malignancies, sialadenitis, and lacrimal and salivary gland dysfunction. Options for reducing the amount of radiation exposure by reducing the amount of RAI in each dose and also to give RAI in combination with rhTSH injections have been explored for low-risk thyroid cancer patients.

Two phase III, randomized, noninferiority studies of patients with low-risk thyroid cancer using a comparison of two thyrotropin-stimulation methods (thyroid hormone withdrawal or use of rhTSH) and two doses of radioiodine I¹³¹ 1.1GBq [30mCi] and 3.7GBq [100mCi] using a 2 × 2 factorial design showed equivalent thyroid ablation rates between high and low dose I¹³¹ at 6 to 10 months after administration of I¹³¹.[15,16][Levels of evidence: 3iA and 3iDii] However, differences in the inclusion criteria in one study [15] consisted of a low-risk, homogeneous cohort in which all of the patients underwent total thyroidectomy, and had pathological TNM stage pT1 ( ≤1 cm) and N1 or Nx, pT1 (>1–2cm) and any N stage, or pT2N0 without thyroid capsule extension/distant metastases. Complete thyroid ablation rate in this study was 92%. Patients undergoing thyroid hormone withdrawal had greater symptoms of hypothyroidism associated with deterioration in quality of life compared with the rhTSH group.

In the other study,[16] patients with more advanced T stage (T1–T3, N0–1) and with less than a total thyroidectomy were included with a lower overall ablation rate of 85%. Neither study assessed the effect of low-dose RAI on long-term recurrences or survival. The studies also did not address whether RAI could be safely omitted in specific low-risk groups.

Current Clinical Trials

Check the list of NCI-supported cancer clinical trials that are now accepting patients with stage I papillary thyroid cancer, stage I follicular thyroid cancer, stage II papillary thyroid cancer and stage II follicular thyroid cancer. The list of clinical trials can be further narrowed by location, drug, intervention, and other criteria.

General information about clinical trials is also available from the NCI website.

References

1. Carling T, Udelsman R: Thyroid tumors. In: DeVita VT Jr, Lawrence TS, Rosenberg SA: Cancer: Principles and Practice of Oncology. 9th ed. Philadelphia, Pa: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, 2011, pp 1457-72.
2. Grant CS, Hay ID, Gough IR, et al.: Local recurrence in papillary thyroid carcinoma: is extent of surgical resection important? Surgery 104 (6): 954-62, 1988. [PubMed: 3194847]
3. Cady B, Rossi R: An expanded view of risk-group definition in differentiated thyroid carcinoma. Surgery 104 (6): 947-53, 1988. [PubMed: 3194846]
4. Mazzaferri EL, Jhiang SM: Long-term impact of initial surgical and medical therapy on papillary and follicular thyroid cancer. Am J Med 97 (5): 418-28, 1994. [PubMed: 7977430]
5. Staunton MD: Thyroid cancer: a multivariate analysis on influence of treatment on long-term survival. Eur J Surg Oncol 20 (6): 613-21, 1994. [PubMed: 7995409]
6. Tollefsen HR, Shah JP, Huvos AG: Follicular carcinoma of the thyroid. Am J Surg 126 (4): 523-8, 1973. [PubMed: 4743837]
7. Edis AJ: Surgical treatment for thyroid cancer. Surg Clin North Am 57 (3): 533-42, 1977. [PubMed: 867221]
8. Bilimoria KY, Bentrem DJ, Ko CY, et al.: Extent of surgery affects survival for papillary thyroid cancer. Ann Surg 246 (3): 375-81; discussion 381-4, 2007. [PMC free article: PMC1959355] [PubMed: 17717441]
9. Bilimoria KY, Bentrem DJ, Linn JG, et al.: Utilization of total thyroidectomy for papillary thyroid cancer in the United States. Surgery 142 (6): 906-13; discussion 913.e1-2, 2007. [PubMed: 18063075]
10. Beierwaltes WH, Rabbani R, Dmuchowski C, et al.: An analysis of "ablation of thyroid remnants" with I-131 in 511 patients from 1947-1984: experience at University of Michigan. J Nucl Med 25 (12): 1287-93, 1984. [PubMed: 6502251]
11. Hay ID, Grant CS, van Heerden JA, et al.: Papillary thyroid microcarcinoma: a study of 535 cases observed in a 50-year period. Surgery 112 (6): 1139-46; discussion 1146-7, 1992. [PubMed: 1455316]
12. Hay ID, Grant CS, Bergstralh EJ, et al.: Unilateral total lobectomy: is it sufficient surgical treatment for patients with AMES low-risk papillary thyroid carcinoma? Surgery 124 (6): 958-64; discussion 964-6, 1998. [PubMed: 9854569]
13. Hänscheid H, Lassmann M, Luster M, et al.: Iodine biokinetics and dosimetry in radioiodine therapy of thyroid cancer: procedures and results of a prospective international controlled study of ablation after rhTSH or hormone withdrawal. J Nucl Med 47 (4): 648-54, 2006. [PubMed: 16595499]
14. Schvartz C, Bonnetain F, Dabakuyo S, et al.: Impact on overall survival of radioactive iodine in low-risk differentiated thyroid cancer patients. J Clin Endocrinol Metab 97 (5): 1526-35, 2012. [PubMed: 22344193]
15. Schlumberger M, Catargi B, Borget I, et al.: Strategies of radioiodine ablation in patients with low-risk thyroid cancer. N Engl J Med 366 (18): 1663-73, 2012. [PubMed: 22551127]
16. Mallick U, Harmer C, Yap B, et al.: Ablation with low-dose radioiodine and thyrotropin alfa in thyroid cancer. N Engl J Med 366 (18): 1674-85, 2012. [PubMed: 22551128]

Current Clinical Trials

Check the list of NCI-supported cancer clinical trials that are now accepting patients with stage III papillary thyroid cancer and stage III follicular thyroid cancer. The list of clinical trials can be further narrowed by location, drug, intervention, and other criteria.

General information about clinical trials is also available from the NCI website.

References

1. Beierwaltes WH, Rabbani R, Dmuchowski C, et al.: An analysis of "ablation of thyroid remnants" with I-131 in 511 patients from 1947-1984: experience at University of Michigan. J Nucl Med 25 (12): 1287-93, 1984. [PubMed: 6502251]
2. Simpson WJ, Carruthers JS: The role of external radiation in the management of papillary and follicular thyroid cancer. Am J Surg 136 (4): 457-60, 1978. [PubMed: 707725]

Current Clinical Trials

Check the list of NCI-supported cancer clinical trials that are now accepting patients with stage IV papillary thyroid cancer and stage IV follicular thyroid cancer. The list of clinical trials can be further narrowed by location, drug, intervention, and other criteria.

General information about clinical trials is also available from the NCI website.

References

1. Brose MS, Nutting CM, Jarzab B, et al.: Sorafenib in radioactive iodine-refractory, locally advanced or metastatic differentiated thyroid cancer: a randomised, double-blind, phase 3 trial. Lancet 384 (9940): 319-28, 2014. [PMC free article: PMC4366116] [PubMed: 24768112]
2. Simpson WJ, Carruthers JS: The role of external radiation in the management of papillary and follicular thyroid cancer. Am J Surg 136 (4): 457-60, 1978. [PubMed: 707725]
3. Gottlieb JA, Hill CS Jr, Ibanez ML, et al.: Chemotherapy of thyroid cancer. An evaluation of experience with 37 patients. Cancer 30 (3): 848-53, 1972. [PubMed: 5075365]
4. Harada T, Nishikawa Y, Suzuki T, et al.: Bleomycin treatment for cancer of the thyroid. Am J Surg 122 (1): 53-7, 1971. [PubMed: 5091855]
5. Shimaoka K, Schoenfeld DA, DeWys WD, et al.: A randomized trial of doxorubicin versus doxorubicin plus cisplatin in patients with advanced thyroid carcinoma. Cancer 56 (9): 2155-60, 1985. [PubMed: 3902203]
6. Sherman SI, Wirth LJ, Droz JP, et al.: Motesanib diphosphate in progressive differentiated thyroid cancer. N Engl J Med 359 (1): 31-42, 2008. [PubMed: 18596272]

Thyroidectomy

Patients with MTC should be treated with a total thyroidectomy, unless there is evidence of distant metastasis. In patients with clinically palpable MTC, the incidence of microscopically positive nodes is more than 75%; routine central and bilateral modified neck dissections have been recommended.[7] When cancer is confined to the thyroid gland, the prognosis is excellent.

External Radiation Therapy

External radiation therapy has been used for palliation of locally recurrent tumors; however, no evidence exists that it provides any survival advantage.[8] Radioactive iodine has no place in the treatment of patients with MTC.

Treatment options for locally advanced and metastatic disease:

• Palliative chemotherapy.

Palliative Chemotherapy

Vandetanib is an oral inhibitor of RET kinase, vascular endothelial growth-factor receptor, and epidermal growth-factor receptor signaling. It was tested in a placebo-controlled, prospective trial (NCT00410761) in 331 patients with locally advanced and metastatic disease with a 2:1 ratio in assignment to the study drug.[9] With a median follow-up of 24 months, progression-free survival (PFS) favored vandetanib (hazard ratio = 0.46; 95% confidence interval, 0.31–0.69; P < .001) with a median PFS estimated at 30.5 months for vandetanib versus 19.3 months for placebo.[9][Level of evidence: 1iiDiii]

Overall survival (OS) was not different at 24 months; longer follow-up will be required since only 47 patients had died at the time of analysis, and there was a crossover to the study drug on progression from placebo, making analysis of OS problematic. Vandetanib has significant side effects, including diarrhea, rash, hypertension, and QT prolongation. Quality of life was not formally assessed in this trial.[9]

Palliative chemotherapy has been reported to produce occasional responses in patients with metastatic disease.[10-13] No single drug regimen can be considered standard. Some patients with distant metastases will experience prolonged survival and can be managed expectantly until they become symptomatic.

Current Clinical Trials

Check the list of NCI-supported cancer clinical trials that are now accepting patients with thyroid gland medullary carcinoma. The list of clinical trials can be further narrowed by location, drug, intervention, and other criteria.

General information about clinical trials is also available from the NCI website.

References

1. Soh EY, Clark OH: Surgical considerations and approach to thyroid cancer. Endocrinol Metab Clin North Am 25 (1): 115-39, 1996. [PubMed: 8907683]
2. Giuffrida D, Gharib H: Current diagnosis and management of medullary thyroid carcinoma. Ann Oncol 9 (7): 695-701, 1998. [PubMed: 9739433]
3. Saad MF, Ordonez NG, Rashid RK, et al.: Medullary carcinoma of the thyroid. A study of the clinical features and prognostic factors in 161 patients. Medicine (Baltimore) 63 (6): 319-42, 1984. [PubMed: 6503683]
4. Bergholm U, Bergström R, Ekbom A: Long-term follow-up of patients with medullary carcinoma of the thyroid. Cancer 79 (1): 132-8, 1997. [PubMed: 8988737]
5. Lips CJ, Landsvater RM, Höppener JW, et al.: Clinical screening as compared with DNA analysis in families with multiple endocrine neoplasia type 2A. N Engl J Med 331 (13): 828-35, 1994. [PubMed: 7915822]
6. Decker RA, Peacock ML, Borst MJ, et al.: Progress in genetic screening of multiple endocrine neoplasia type 2A: is calcitonin testing obsolete? Surgery 118 (2): 257-63; discussion 263-4, 1995. [PubMed: 7638742]
7. Moley JF, DeBenedetti MK: Patterns of nodal metastases in palpable medullary thyroid carcinoma: recommendations for extent of node dissection. Ann Surg 229 (6): 880-7; discussion 887-8, 1999. [PMC free article: PMC1420836] [PubMed: 10363903]
8. Brierley JD, Tsang RW: External radiation therapy in the treatment of thyroid malignancy. Endocrinol Metab Clin North Am 25 (1): 141-57, 1996. [PubMed: 8907684]
9. Wells SA Jr, Robinson BG, Gagel RF, et al.: Vandetanib in patients with locally advanced or metastatic medullary thyroid cancer: a randomized, double-blind phase III trial. J Clin Oncol 30 (2): 134-41, 2012. [PMC free article: PMC3675689] [PubMed: 22025146]
10. Shimaoka K, Schoenfeld DA, DeWys WD, et al.: A randomized trial of doxorubicin versus doxorubicin plus cisplatin in patients with advanced thyroid carcinoma. Cancer 56 (9): 2155-60, 1985. [PubMed: 3902203]
11. De Besi P, Busnardo B, Toso S, et al.: Combined chemotherapy with bleomycin, adriamycin, and platinum in advanced thyroid cancer. J Endocrinol Invest 14 (6): 475-80, 1991. [PubMed: 1723086]
12. Wu LT, Averbuch SD, Ball DW, et al.: Treatment of advanced medullary thyroid carcinoma with a combination of cyclophosphamide, vincristine, and dacarbazine. Cancer 73 (2): 432-6, 1994. [PubMed: 8293411]
13. Orlandi F, Caraci P, Berruti A, et al.: Chemotherapy with dacarbazine and 5-fluorouracil in advanced medullary thyroid cancer. Ann Oncol 5 (8): 763-5, 1994. [PubMed: 7826911]

Surgery

Tracheostomy is frequently necessary. If the disease is confined to the local area, which is rare, total thyroidectomy is warranted to reduce symptoms caused by the tumor mass.[1,2]

Radiation Therapy

External-beam radiation therapy may be used in patients who are not surgical candidates or whose tumor cannot be surgically excised.

Chemotherapy

Anaplastic thyroid cancer is not responsive to I¹³¹ therapy; treatment with individual anticancer drugs has been reported to produce partial remissions in some patients. Approximately 30% of patients achieve a partial remission with doxorubicin.[3] The combination of doxorubicin plus cisplatin appears to be more active than doxorubicin alone and has been reported to produce more complete responses.[4]

Treatment options under clinical evaluation:

• The combination of chemotherapy plus radiation therapy in patients following complete resection may provide prolonged survival but has not been compared with any one modality alone.[5,6]

Current Clinical Trials

Check the list of NCI-supported cancer clinical trials that are now accepting patients with anaplastic thyroid cancer. The list of clinical trials can be further narrowed by location, drug, intervention, and other criteria.

General information about clinical trials is also available from the NCI website.

References

1. Goldman JM, Goren EN, Cohen MH, et al.: Anaplastic thyroid carcinoma: long-term survival after radical surgery. J Surg Oncol 14 (4): 389-94, 1980. [PubMed: 7442263]
2. Aldinger KA, Samaan NA, Ibanez M, et al.: Anaplastic carcinoma of the thyroid: a review of 84 cases of spindle and giant cell carcinoma of the thyroid. Cancer 41 (6): 2267-75, 1978. [PubMed: 657091]
3. Carling T, Udelsman R: Thyroid tumors. In: DeVita VT Jr, Lawrence TS, Rosenberg SA: Cancer: Principles and Practice of Oncology. 9th ed. Philadelphia, Pa: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, 2011, pp 1457-72.
4. Shimaoka K, Schoenfeld DA, DeWys WD, et al.: A randomized trial of doxorubicin versus doxorubicin plus cisplatin in patients with advanced thyroid carcinoma. Cancer 56 (9): 2155-60, 1985. [PubMed: 3902203]
5. Haigh PI, Ituarte PH, Wu HS, et al.: Completely resected anaplastic thyroid carcinoma combined with adjuvant chemotherapy and irradiation is associated with prolonged survival. Cancer 91 (12): 2335-42, 2001. [PubMed: 11413523]
6. De Crevoisier R, Baudin E, Bachelot A, et al.: Combined treatment of anaplastic thyroid carcinoma with surgery, chemotherapy, and hyperfractionated accelerated external radiotherapy. Int J Radiat Oncol Biol Phys 60 (4): 1137-43, 2004. [PubMed: 15519785]

Current Clinical Trials

Check the list of NCI-supported cancer clinical trials that are now accepting patients with recurrent thyroid cancer. The list of clinical trials can be further narrowed by location, drug, intervention, and other criteria.

General information about clinical trials is also available from the NCI website.

References

1. Ross DS: Long-term management of differentiated thyroid cancer. Endocrinol Metab Clin North Am 19 (3): 719-39, 1990. [PubMed: 2261913]
2. Mazzaferri EL, Jhiang SM: Long-term impact of initial surgical and medical therapy on papillary and follicular thyroid cancer. Am J Med 97 (5): 418-28, 1994. [PubMed: 7977430]
3. Goretzki PE, Simon D, Frilling A, et al.: Surgical reintervention for differentiated thyroid cancer. Br J Surg 80 (8): 1009-12, 1993. [PubMed: 8402050]
4. De Besi P, Busnardo B, Toso S, et al.: Combined chemotherapy with bleomycin, adriamycin, and platinum in advanced thyroid cancer. J Endocrinol Invest 14 (6): 475-80, 1991. [PubMed: 1723086]
5. Pak H, Gourgiotis L, Chang WI, et al.: Role of metastasectomy in the management of thyroid carcinoma: the NIH experience. J Surg Oncol 82 (1): 10-8, 2003. [PubMed: 12501164]
6. Coburn M, Teates D, Wanebo HJ: Recurrent thyroid cancer. Role of surgery versus radioactive iodine (I131) Ann Surg 219 (6): 587-93; discussion 593-5, 1994. [PMC free article: PMC1243200] [PubMed: 8203968]
7. Mallin WH, Elgazzar AH, Maxon HR 3rd: Imaging modalities in the follow-up of non-iodine avid thyroid carcinoma. Am J Otolaryngol 15 (6): 417-22, 1994 Nov-Dec. [PubMed: 7872477]
8. Brose MS, Nutting CM, Jarzab B, et al.: Sorafenib in radioactive iodine-refractory, locally advanced or metastatic differentiated thyroid cancer: a randomised, double-blind, phase 3 trial. Lancet 384 (9940): 319-28, 2014. [PMC free article: PMC4366116] [PubMed: 24768112]
9. Vikram B, Strong EW, Shah JP, et al.: Intraoperative radiotherapy in patients with recurrent head and neck cancer. Am J Surg 150 (4): 485-7, 1985. [PubMed: 4051112]
10. Shimaoka K, Schoenfeld DA, DeWys WD, et al.: A randomized trial of doxorubicin versus doxorubicin plus cisplatin in patients with advanced thyroid carcinoma. Cancer 56 (9): 2155-60, 1985. [PubMed: 3902203]
11. Sherman SI, Wirth LJ, Droz JP, et al.: Motesanib diphosphate in progressive differentiated thyroid cancer. N Engl J Med 359 (1): 31-42, 2008. [PubMed: 18596272]

Purpose of This Summary

This PDQ cancer information summary for health professionals provides comprehensive, peer-reviewed, evidence-based information about the treatment of thyroid cancer. It is intended as a resource to inform and assist clinicians who care for cancer patients. It does not provide formal guidelines or recommendations for making health care decisions.

Reviewers and Updates

This summary is reviewed regularly and updated as necessary by the PDQ Adult Treatment Editorial Board, which is editorially independent of the National Cancer Institute (NCI). The summary reflects an independent review of the literature and does not represent a policy statement of NCI or the National Institutes of Health (NIH).

Board members review recently published articles each month to determine whether an article should:

• be discussed at a meeting,
• be cited with text, or
• replace or update an existing article that is already cited.

Changes to the summaries are made through a consensus process in which Board members evaluate the strength of the evidence in the published articles and determine how the article should be included in the summary.

The lead reviewers for Thyroid Cancer Treatment are:

• Scharukh Jalisi, MD, FACS (Boston University Medical Center)
• Eva Szabo, MD
• Minh Tam Truong, MD (Boston University Medical Center)

Any comments or questions about the summary content should be submitted to Cancer.gov through the NCI website's Email Us. Do not contact the individual Board Members with questions or comments about the summaries. Board members will not respond to individual inquiries.

Levels of Evidence

Some of the reference citations in this summary are accompanied by a level-of-evidence designation. These designations are intended to help readers assess the strength of the evidence supporting the use of specific interventions or approaches. The PDQ Adult Treatment Editorial Board uses a formal evidence ranking system in developing its level-of-evidence designations.

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The preferred citation for this PDQ summary is:

National Cancer Institute: PDQ® Thyroid Cancer Treatment. Bethesda, MD: National Cancer Institute. Date last modified <MM/DD/YYYY>. Available at: http://www.cancer.gov/types/thyroid/hp/thyroid-treatment-pdq. Accessed <MM/DD/YYYY>.

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