The Hopu Ark team compiled | Thyroid cancer, because of its slow progression and inconspicuous symptoms, is also known as "good cancer" and "lazy cancer". Some patients with tiny papillary thyroid cancer do not even need treatment, but many people do not understand that even thyroid cancer, which is called good cancer, may still recur after surgery.
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"Good cancer" will also recur
Thyroid cancer can be divided into papillary carcinoma, follicular carcinoma, undifferentiated carcinoma, medullary carcinoma, lymphoma, etc., of which papillary cancer has the highest incidence, accounting for about 92.6% of all thyroid cancers, thyroid papillary carcinoma malignancy is low, the prognosis effect is good, according to U.S. clinical data, 10-year survival rate is as high as 93%, some thyroid cancer papillary cancer patients, even if untreated, will not be affected for a lifetime.
However, for some large thyroid cancer papillary carcinomas, as well as other types of thyroid cancer, especially undifferentiated cancers with a high degree of malignancy, if they cannot be treated in a standardized and reasonable manner at the time of diagnosis, the probability of recurrence is greater.
A study based on the treatment of recurrent thyroid cancer in canadian populations reported that thyroid cancer patients have a 30% chance of recurrence within 10 years of treatment, with the most common cause being local or cervical lymph node recurrence.
▲Image source: Reference source[1]
How to effectively prevent the recurrence of thyroid cancer?
1. Clarify the type and standardize the treatment
After the diagnosis of thyroid cancer, select authoritative hospitals and experts, and formulate a scientific and reasonable treatment plan is an important means to reduce the probability of tumor recurrence.
Currently, treatments for thyroid cancer include surgery, radioactive iodine therapy, TSH suppression therapy, and targeted therapy. The 2018 edition of the Thyroid Tumor Diagnosis and Treatment Guidelines of the Japanese Society of Thyroid Surgery has divided thyroid papillary carcinoma into four categories: ultra-low risk, low-risk, medium-risk and high-risk, and has formulated corresponding treatment strategies.
Grading of the 2018 edition of the Thyroid Tumor Diagnosis and Treatment Guidelines
Treatment based on the risk of thyroid cancer can help thyroid cancer patients avoid over-treatment such as "one-size-fits-all" while reducing the recurrence of thyroid cancer caused by improper treatment.
2. Regular review, pay attention to self-examination
Thyroid cancer patients should visit the hospital regularly after surgery and follow the doctor's advice to complete the necessary tests, which is a reliable way to detect recurrence or metastasis at an early stage. In general, the review is carried out every 3 months within one year after surgery, and the interval between review is extended as appropriate after one year, for example, every 6 months.
In addition, thyroid cancer patients need to pay close attention to whether there is a new abnormal mass in the neck after surgery, and if a new abnormal mass is found, it is necessary to conduct a B ultrasound examination in time to determine the nature.
3. Develop good living habits
Eating more vegetables, consuming an appropriate amount of iodine, quitting smoking and alcohol, exercising more, developing good living habits, and facing life with a positive and optimistic attitude can help enhance resistance and reduce the recurrence probability of thyroid cancer.
Can thyroid cancer recurrence still be saved?
Many thyroid cancer patients and their families will feel very panicked when they hear about the recurrence, believing that once thyroid cancer recurs, the prognosis is extremely poor and they cannot get effective treatment. But in fact, even patients with recurrent thyroid cancer can get a good prognosis after reasonable treatment.
Differentiated thyroid cancer, including papillary thyroid cancer, can be clinically cured after secondary surgery after recurrence. A 2017 study of cervical recurrence of differentiated thyroid cancer showed that 63% of patients achieved complete remission after re-surgery, with a 5-year survival rate of 53%.
▲Image source: Reference source[2]
For patients with low-differentiated thyroid cancer, they can also survive long-term after comprehensive treatment, including surgery and targeted therapy.
Previously, Hopu Ark had helped a low-differentiation thyroid cancer recurrence, Ms. K, who was sentenced to death by domestic doctors, to make an appointment for treatment at the Shuntendo Hospital affiliated with Shuntendo University in Japan. After the targeted treatment adopted by Shuntian Hospital, the metastases in Ms. K's body either disappeared, were inactivated, or shrunk to a very small size, and achieved long-term survival.
Therefore, for patients diagnosed with thyroid cancer, it is very important to identify the type as soon as possible after diagnosis and carry out targeted treatment; it is very important to prevent recurrence after treatment. At the same time, patients do not need to worry too much about the recurrence of thyroid cancer, the recurrence rate of thyroid cancer is only 30%, and even patients with recurrent thyroid cancer can be clinically cured after standardized treatment.
As a global medical service expert, Hopu Ark can provide remote consultation and one-stop overseas medical treatment services for thyroid cancer patients, helping patients achieve longer disease-free survival and better quality of life. If you want to know more about thyroid cancer treatment, or are interested in obtaining the diagnosis and treatment plan of the world's authoritative experts, you can contact Xiaobian through private message.
References:
[1] Cureus | Treatment for Recurrent Differentiated Thyroid Cancer: A Canadian Population Based Experience
https://www.cureus.com/articles/26144-treatment-for-recurrent-differentiated-thyroid-cancer-a-canadian-population-based-experience
[2] Lamartina L, Borget I, Mirghani H, Al Ghuzlan A, Berdelou A, Bidault F, Deandreis D, Baudin E, Travagli JP, Schlumberger M, Hartl DM, Leboulleux S. Surgery for Neck Recurrence of Differentiated Thyroid Cancer: Outcomes and Risk Factors. J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 2017 Mar 1;102(3):1020-1031. doi: 10.1210/jc.2016-3284. PMID: 28359102.
[3] Systematic Review of Recurrence Rate after Hemithyroidectomy for Low-Risk Well-Differentiated Thyroid Cancer - FullText - European Thyroid Journal 2020, Vol. 9, No. 2 - Karger Publishers
https://www.karger.com/Article/Fulltext/504961