[Prognostic factors in thyroid cancer].

General factors affecting the prognosis of thyroid cancer are age and sex of the patient. The size of the primary tumour seems to be unimportant whilst the thyroid capsule is intact. Distant metastases shorten the survival time, whereas in cases of differentiated carcinoma cervical lymph node have no prognostic influence. A combined therapy of near-total thyroidectomy, 131-J-treatment, and TSH-suppression therapy using thyroid hormones is most successful. Additional external radiation seems to exert some positive effects in special cases. The cell-type has a great prognostic influence irrespective of the above mentioned variables. Papillary carcinoma has the best prognosis with a 5-yrs and 10-yrs survival rate of 86% or 78% respectively. The rates for follicular carcinoma are 72% respectively or 60%, for oncocytotic carcinoma (Hürthle's cell cancer) 83% and 50%, and for medullary carcinoma (C-cell cancer) 70% or 55% respectively. The natural history of undifferentiated (anaplastic) carcinoma is nearly always fatal with survival rates of 9% and 3% for 5 years or 10 years respectively.