Factors Influencing the Success of the First Radioiodine Therapy for Differentiated Thyroid Carcinoma.

OBJECTIVE

Differentiated thyroid cancer (DTC) has a favorable prognosis following treatment by thyroidectomy and subsequent post-operative radioactive iodine therapy (RAIT). However, prognostic factors for the success of the first RAIT remain inconclusive. The aim of the present study was to evaluate prognostic factors for the success of the first RAIT in DTC patients.

MATERIAL AND METHOD

We retrospectively studied 401 DTC patients who underwent total, near-total and subtotal thyroidectomy followed by high dose RAIT from 1994 to 2004. Successful RAIT was assessed using the following criteria: (a) stimulated serum thyroglobulin (sTg) < 10 ng/ml; (b) negative diagnostic 131I total body scan (DxTBS); and (c) no serial increase in thyroglobulin antibody (TgAb) levels. Factors influencing successful first RAIT were evaluated.

RESULTS

In total, 401 patients were enrolled into the present study. Most patients were female (81.5%) and had papillary cell type cancer (74.3%). Median tumor size was 2.55 cm. (range, 0–11 cm). Metastases at cervical node and distant sites were found prior to RAIT in 167 and 26 patients, respectively. The first RAIT doses of 2.96–3.7, 5.5 and 7.4 GBq were administered to 133, 262 and 6 patients, respectively. Overall success rate of the first RAIT was 32.9%. From univariate analysis, female sex, age of <45 years, underwent thyroidectomy without cervical lymph node dissection, no multifocality, free surgical margin, no metastasis and sTg of <20 ng/dl at ablation were prognostic factors. Age of <45 years and sTg of <20 ng/dl at ablation were independent significant prognostic factors (both p<0.001) from multivariate analysis.

CONCLUSION

Age below 45 years and sTg below 20 ng/dl at ablation are independent prognostic factors for the success of the first RAIT.