Patient Characteristics and Patterns of Surgical Interventions in
Patients of Differentiated Thyroid Cancer with Distant Metastasis
Abstract
Abstract: Unlike most head and neck cancers, the presence of distant
metastasis (DM) does not preclude curative intent treatment and surgical
interventions are common in metastatic disease. DM has an adverse impact
on survival and lends considerable morbidity to the patient. This
research attempts to study the demographics, patterns of metastasis, and
surgical interventions in this rare subgroup of patients with
differentiated thyroid cancer (DTC). Materials and methods: Thirty two
patients of DTC with radiologically or histopathologically or
cytopathologically confirmed DM who underwent surgery at a tertiary care
centre from August 2011 to December 2018 formed the study cohort of this
retrospective study. Results: The study population comprised 59%
females and had a median age of 55 (19- 79) years. Thorax was the most
common site of metastasis, documented in 56% of patients, while 53%
patients had bone metastases. Multiple DM were noted in 8 patients. All
patients underwent total thyroidectomy or completion thyroidectomy with
or without neck dissection. Surgery for metastatic sites was possible in
14 patients (44%) with debulking and spine fixation being the commonest
surgical intervention for metastasis. Thyroidectomy, with or without
neck dissection followed by radioactive iodine (RAI) ablation was used
as the primary modality to treat DM in patients who did not undergo
specific surgical treatment for distant metastases. The median dose of
RAI received by patients was 400 (25 – 749) mCi, in one to four
sessions (median- 2 sessions). Three patients received conventional
chemotherapy, while four received Sorafenib. Conclusion: Metastasectomy
in differentiated thyroid cancer with distant metastases is feasible in
selected patients and surgical interventions are most commonly performed
on the spine to prevent neurological complications. RAI ablation is
universally administered in this subset of patients and in very high
doses, often distributed in multiple sessions. The role of chemotherapy
and tyrosine kinase inhibitor is still restricted to palliative settings
and cost constraints remain a detriment to more widespread use.