Assessment of adherence to treatment recommendations among patients with heart failure: a cross-sectional study.

BACKGROUND: Heart failure (HF) is a chronic condition characterized by significant impairment of the cardiovascular system, leading to a decline in health-related quality of life, recurrent hospitalizations, and increased mortality risk. It poses a substantial challenge for modern medicine, particularly when patients fail to adhere to therapeutic recommendations. The primary aim of this study was to evaluate the level of adherence to therapeutic guidelines among patients with HF and identify factors influencing adherence levels. METHODS: The study comprised 105 HF patients admitted to the cardiology department. A diagnostic survey approach was utilized, employing the Adherence in Chronic Diseases Scale (ACDS) along with a self-developed questionnaire. RESULTS: The findings revealed that 39.05% of participants exhibited a moderate level of adherence to therapeutic recommendations, while 34.29% reported high adherence and 26.67% displayed low adherence. Most of the patients (n = 66) had a rather good level of knowledge. Factors such as higher education (p < 0.001), engagement in mental work (p = 0.001), favorable socioeconomic status (p < 0.001), being in a stable relationship (p < 0.001), and residing with family (p < 0.001) were associated with increased adherence levels. The multivariable linear regression model indicated significant (p < 0.05) independent predictors that positively influenced the ACDS score, including being in a relationship, widowhood, and average or poor financial situation. Conversely, factors such as obesity and respiratory diseases were associated with a decrease in the ACDS score (p < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: This study underscores the moderate adherence level to therapeutic recommendations among HF patients. Sociodemographic factors including education level, relationship status, occupation, financial stability, and living arrangements significantly impact adherence. Conversely, patients with obesity, respiratory conditions, or frequent HF-related hospitalizations demonstrate lower adherence. Patient education emerges as a pivotal factor influencing adherence. Tailored interventions targeting these factors could enhance adherence and optimize HF management outcomes.

Stereotactic radiotherapy is a useful treatment option for patients with medullary thyroid cancer.

The role of radiotherapy in advanced medullary thyroid carcinoma (MTC) is confined to patients in whom surgical treatment or the administration of tyrosine kinase inhibitors are not possible or contraindicated. High fractionated radiation doses during radiosurgery or fractionated stereotactic radiotherapy are applied to reduce cancer-related symptoms and stabilize irradiated lesions. This study aimed to retrospectively evaluate the therapeutic effect of stereotactic radiotherapy in MTC patients. MATERIAL AND METHODS: The study group involved 11 MTC patients, treated due to 16 cancer lesions, mainly bone metastases (10 lesions), lymph node (2 lesions) metastases, or liver metastases (2 lesions), one primary thyroid tumor, and one MTC recurrence in the thyroid bed. The fractionated and total radiation doses ranged between 5 and 12 Gy and 8-44 Gy, respectively. Six lesions were treated with a single radiation fraction, three lesions with 2 fractions, another 6 lesions with 3 fractions, whereas the remaining one metastatic lesion with 9 fractions of stereotactic radiosurgery. RESULTS: The beneficial effect of stereotactic radiosurgery was obtained in all treated lesions. None of treated lesions progressed in the further disease course. Fourteen lesions were stable (87.5 %), including eight lesions showing progression before radiosurgery (good response). Disease control was obtained in all soft-tissue metastases. Regarding bone metastases, partial regression was achieved in 20 % lesions, whereas in 30 % lesions progressive before radiotherapy, the treatment led to disease stabilization. CONCLUSIONS: Our data pointed to the effectiveness of high-dose fractionated radiotherapy in MTC. However, an observation of a larger group of patients is required to confirm it.

Gene Expression (mRNA) Markers for Differentiating between Malignant and Benign Follicular Thyroid Tumours.

Distinguishing between follicular thyroid cancer (FTC) and follicular thyroid adenoma (FTA) constitutes a long-standing diagnostic problem resulting in equivocal histopathological diagnoses. There is therefore a need for additional molecular markers. To identify molecular differences between FTC and FTA, we analyzed the gene expression microarray data of 52 follicular neoplasms. We also performed a meta-analysis involving 14 studies employing high throughput methods (365 follicular neoplasms analyzed). Based on these two analyses, we selected 18 genes differentially expressed between FTA and FTC. We validated them by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) in an independent set of 71 follicular neoplasms from formaldehyde-fixed paraffin embedded (FFPE) tissue material. We confirmed differential expression for 7 genes (CPQ, PLVAP, TFF3, ACVRL1, ZFYVE21, FAM189A2, and CLEC3B). Finally, we created a classifier that distinguished between FTC and FTA with an accuracy of 78%, sensitivity of 76%, and specificity of 80%, based on the expression of 4 genes (CPQ, PLVAP, TFF3, ACVRL1). In our study, we have demonstrated that meta-analysis is a valuable method for selecting possible molecular markers. Based on our results, we conclude that there might exist a plausible limit of gene classifier accuracy of approximately 80%, when follicular tumors are discriminated based on formalin-fixed postoperative material.

Lobo-isthmectomy in the management of differentiated thyroid cancer.

We have recently witnessed a rapid increase in the incidence of differentiated thyroid carcinoma (DTC), particularly low and very low-risk papillary thyroid carcinoma. Simultaneously, the number of cancer-related deaths has remained stable for more than 30 years. Such an indolent nature and long-term survival prompted researchers and experts to an ongoing discussion on the adequacy of DTC management to avoid, on the one hand, the overtreatment of low-risk cases and, on the other hand, the undertreatment of highly aggressive ones.The most recent guidelines of the American Thyroid Association (ATA GL) moved primary thyroid surgery in DTC towards a less aggressive approach by making lobectomy an option for patients with intrathyroidal low-risk DTC tumors up to 4 cm in diameter without evidence of extrathyroidal extension or lymph node metastases. It was one of the key changes in DTC management proposed by the ATA in 2015.Following the introduction of the 2015 ATA GL, the role of thyroid lobectomy in DTC management has slowly become increasingly important. The data coming from analyses of the large databases and retrospective studies prove that a less extensive surgical approach, even if in some reports it was related to a slight increase of the risk of recurrence, did not show a negative impact on disease-specific and overall survival in T1T2N0M0 low-risk DTC. There is no doubt that making thyroid lobectomy an option for low-risk papillary and follicular carcinomas was an essential step toward the de-escalation of treatment in thyroid carcinoma.This review summarizes the current recommendations and evidence-based data supporting the necessity of de-escalation of primary thyroid surgery in low-risk DTC. It also discusses the controversies raised by introducing new ATA guidelines and tries to resolve some open questions.

Thyroid remnant ablation with radioiodine activity of 30, 60, and 100 mCi in patients with differentiated thyroid cancer - a prospective comparison of long-term outcomes.

Introduction: The aim of this prospective study was to evaluate long-term outcomes in differentiated thyroid cancer (DTC) patients postoperatively treated with distinct RAI activities of 30 mCi, 60 mCi, and 100 mCi. Material and methods: The analysis involved 277 low-risk and 46 intermediate-risk patients, who underwent radioiodine (RAI) ablation with 30 mCi, 60 mCi or 100 mCi under prospective, randomized clinical trials. Seventy-eight patients from the low-risk group received 30 mCi, whereas 125 and 74 patients received 60 mCi and 100 mCi, respectively. Regarding the intermediate-risk group, 20 patients were given 60 mCi, and 26 subjects were given 100 mCi. The mean time of follow-up was 11 years. Results: An excellent treatment response was obtained in 88%, 89% and 90% of low-risk patients treated with 30 mCi, 60 mCi, and 100 mCi, respectively, and in 85% of intermediate-risk patients, who were administered 60 or 100 mCi. An indeterminate response was achieved in 9.4% and 6.5%, whereas an incomplete structural response was obtained in 1.4% and 6.5% of low-risk and intermediate-risk patients, respectively. An incomplete biochemical response was observed only in 2.2% of intermediate-risk patients. The differences in treatment response regarding RAI activity were not significant. Conclusions: RAI activity of 30 mCi demonstrates a comparable efficacy as 60 mCi and 100 mCi in low-risk DTC. RAI activity of 60 mCi seems to be effective in intermediate-risk DTC.

Diagnosis and treatment of thyroid cancer in adult patients - Recommendations of Polish Scientific Societies and the National Oncological Strategy. 2022 Update [Diagnostyka i leczenie raka tarczycy u chorych doroslych - Rekomendacje Polskich Towarzystw Naukowych oraz Narodowej Strategii Onkologicznej. Aktualizacja na rok 2022].

The guidelines Thyroid Cancer 2022 are prepared based on previous Polish recommendations updated in 2018. They consider international guidelines - American Thyroid Association (ATA) 2015 and National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN); however, they are adapted according to the ADAPTE process. The strength of the recommendations and the quality of the scientific evidence are assessed according to the GRADE system and the ATA 2015 and NCCN recommendations. The core of the changes made in the Polish recommendations is the inclusion of international guidelines and the results of those scientific studies that have already proven themselves prospectively. These extensions allow de-escalation of the therapeutic management in low-risk thyroid carcinoma, i.e., enabling active surveillance in papillary microcarcinoma to be chosen alternatively to minimally invasive techniques after agreeing on such management with the patient. Further extensions allow the use of thyroid lobectomy with the isthmus (hemithyroidectomy) in low-risk cancer up to 2 cm in diameter, modification of the indications for postoperative radioiodine treatment toward personalized approach, and clarification of the criteria used during postoperative L-thyroxine treatment. At the same time, the criteria for the preoperative differential diagnosis of nodular goiter in terms of ultrasonography and fine-needle aspiration biopsy have been clarified, and the rules for the histopathological examination of postoperative thyroid material have been updated. New, updated rules for monitoring patients after treatment are also presented. The updated recommendations focus on ensuring the best possible quality of life after thyroid cancer treatment while maintaining the good efficacy of this treatment.

Perspectives and limitations of microarray-based gene expression profiling of thyroid tumors.

Microarray technology has become a powerful tool to analyze the gene expression of tens of thousands of genes simultaneously. Microarray-based gene expression profiles are available for malignant thyroid tumors (i.e., follicular thyroid carcinoma, and papillary thyroid carcinoma), and for benign thyroid tumors (such as autonomously functioning thyroid nodules and cold thyroid nodules). In general, the two main foci of microarray investigations are improved understanding of the pathophysiology/molecular etiology of thyroid neoplasia and the detection of genetic markers that could improve the differential diagnosis of thyroid tumors. Their results revealed new features, not known from one-gene studies. Simultaneously, the increasing number of microarray analyses of different thyroid pathologies raises the demand to efficiently compare the data. However, the use of different microarray platforms complicates cross-analysis. In addition, there are other important differences between these studies: 1) some studies use intraindividual comparisons, whereas other studies perform interindividual comparisons; 2) the reference tissue is defined as strictly nonnodular healthy tissue or also contains benign lesions such as goiter, follicular adenoma, and hyperplastic nodules in some studies; and 3) the widely used Affymetrix GeneChip platform comprises several GeneChip generations that are only partially compatible. Moreover, the different studies are characterized by strong differences in data analysis methods, which vary from simple empiric filters to sophisticated statistic algorithms. Therefore, this review summarizes and compares the different published reports in the context of their study design. It also illustrates perspectives and solutions for data set integration and meta-analysis, as well as the possibilities to combine array analysis with other genetic approaches.

Has differentiated thyroid cancer (DTC) staging changed with in the last ten years in the Silesia region of Poland?

INTRODUCTION: The aim of the study was to compare the advancement of thyroid cancer at diagnosis in Polish patients from the Silesian district in the years 1999 and 2008. MATERIAL AND METHODS: The analyzed group consisted of Silesian district patients with thyroid cancer, who were registered by the Department of Tumour Epidemiology of the Institute of Oncology in Gliwice in the years 1999 and 2008. From a group of 186 patients who entered on record in 1999, 167 were qualified for this analysis. Similarly, from 238 patients registered in 2008, finally 226 were added. We analyzed: sex, age at diagnosis, histotype of thyroid cancer, and DTC staging according to TNM (UICC 2002). In 1999 there were 137 females (82.04 %) and 30 males (17.93%) with thyroid cancer diagnosed at ages 5-81 years. In 2008 there were 183 females (80.97%) and 43 males (19.03%) diagnosed at ages 14-80 years. In both groups, in 1999 and 2008, the median age was the same (51 years). RESULTS: In the year 1999, 119 (71%) and in 2008, 197 (87%) patients were diagnosed with papillary thyroid cancer (p = 0.0003). Relations between age and sex were similar in these years. There was some increase in frequency of patients diagnosed with papillary microcancer (pT1a), which was on the border of statistical significance (p = 0.05). A statistically significant increase of pT1 (p = 0.02) and decrease of pT4 (p = 0.001) and of pTx (p = 0.002) was observed in the year 2008 in the whole cohort of DTC patients. CONCLUSIONS: 1. In 2008 the contribution of papillary histotype to all thyroid cancer patients (87%) was significantly higher than in 1999. 2. The percentage of DTC patients diagnosed with pT1 disease was significantly higher in 2008.

Early Diagnosis of Low-Risk Papillary Thyroid Cancer Results Rather in Overtreatment Than a Better Survival.

We are witnessing a rapid worldwide increase in the incidence of papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC) in the last thirty years. Extensive implementation of cancer screening and wide availability of neck ultrasound or other imaging studies is the main reason responsible for this phenomenon. It resulted in a detection of a growing number of clinically asymptomatic PTCs, mainly low-risk tumors, without any beneficial impact on survival. An indolent nature of low-risk PTC, particularly papillary thyroid microcarcinoma (PTMC), and the excellent outcomes raise an ongoing discussion regarding the adequacy of treatment applied. The question of whether PTMC is overtreated or not is currently completed by another, whether PTMC requires any treatment. Current ATA guidelines propose less extensive preoperative diagnostics and, if differentiated thyroid cancer is diagnosed, less aggressive surgical approach and limit indications for postoperative radioiodine therapy. However, in intrathyroidal PTMCs in the absence of lymph node or distant metastases, active surveillance may constitute alternative management with a low progression rate of 1%-5% and without any increase in the risk of poorer outcomes related to delayed surgery in patients, in whom it was necessary. This review summarizes the current knowledge and future perspectives of active surveillance in low-risk PTC.

The role of postoperative adjuvant radiotherapy in the local control in medullary thyroid carcinoma.

BACKGROUND: The value of postoperative radiotherapy in the treatment of medullary thyroid carcinoma (MTC) has not been unequivocally demonstrated. Therefore our study aimed to answer the question of whether adjuvant radiotherapy showed any impact on the risk of local recurrence and whether there were any differences in response to radiotherapy between hereditary and sporadic MTC. METHODS: A retrospective analysis involved 254 MTC patients, among them 73 patients with a hereditary disease. Two hundred and twenty-four patients, including 43 persons at high risk of local relapse, underwent only initial surgery, 18 other patients were operated due to MTC recurrences, whereas the remaining 12 patients had cytoreductive procedure or were not amenable for surgery. Radiotherapy was carried out in 132 patients. One hundred and twenty patients underwent adjuvant radiotherapy, among them 102 patients after initial surgery. The median follow up was 10 years (range 0.5-29 years). RESULTS: Local recurrence occurred in 107/254 patients, among them in 63 subjects after prior radiotherapy. The frequency of relapse showed significant, increasing trend toward higher MTC stages (p<0.001). More relapses were noticed in patients with lymph node metastases at diagnosis. Adjuvant radiotherapy was associated with a lower risk of nodal recurrence only in high-risk patients, particularly if lymph node metastases were present at MTC diagnosis. The differences between hereditary and sporadic subgroups were not significant. CONCLUSIONS: Adjuvant radiotherapy has a limited importance in MTC treatment. It should be considered in high-risk MTC patients. The presence of RET mutation does not influence the response to radiation.

Postoperative Radioiodine Treatment within 9 Months from Diagnosis Significantly Reduces the Risk of Relapse in Low-Risk Differentiated Thyroid Carcinoma.

PURPOSE: Although postoperative radioiodine (RAI) therapy has been used in patients with differentiated thyroid carcinoma (DTC) for many years, there is still lack of data defining the timing of RAI administration. A retrospective analysis was carried out to answer the question whether the time of postoperative RAI treatment demonstrated any impact on long-term outcomes, particularly in low-risk DTC. MATERIAL: The analyzed group involved 701 DTC patients staged pT1b-T4N0-N1M0, who underwent total thyroidectomy and postoperative RAI therapy. According to the time interval between DTC diagnosis and RAI administration, patients were allocated to one of three groups: up to 9 months (N = 150), between 9 and 24 months (N = 323), and > 24 months (N = 228). Median follow-up was 12.1 years (1.5-15.2). RESULTS: Based on an initial DTC advancement and postoperative stimulated thyroglobulin concentration patients were stratified as a low-, intermediate-, and high-risk group. Low-risk patients, who received RAI therapy up to 9 months, demonstrated significantly lower risk of relapse comparing to those, in whom RAI was administered between 9 and 24 months and after 24 months since DTC diagnosis: 0%, 5.5%, and 7.1%, respectively. Regarding intermediate- and high-risk groups, the differences in the timing of postoperative RAI treatment were not significant. CONCLUSION: If postoperative RAI treatment is considered in low-risk DTC, any delay in RAI administration above 9 months since diagnosis may be related to poorer long-term outcomes.

Guidelines of Polish National Societies Diagnostics and Treatment of Thyroid Carcinoma. 2018 Update.

Significant advances have been made in thyroid can-cer research in recent years, therefore relevant clinical guidelines need to be updated. The current Polish guidelines "Diagnostics and Treatment of Thyroid Carcinoma" have been formulated at the "Thyroid Cancer and Other Malignancies of Endocrine Glands" conference held in Wisla in November 2015 [1].

A multi-gene approach to differentiate papillary thyroid carcinoma from benign lesions: gene selection using support vector machines with bootstrapping.

Selection of novel molecular markers is an important goal of cancer genomics studies. The aim of our analysis was to apply the multivariate bioinformatical tools to rank the genes - potential markers of papillary thyroid cancer (PTC) according to their diagnostic usefulness. We also assessed the accuracy of benign/malignant classification, based on gene expression profiling, for PTC. We analyzed a 180-array dataset (90 HG-U95A and 90 HG-U133A oligonucleotide arrays), which included a collection of 57 PTCs, 61 benign thyroid tumors, and 62 apparently normal tissues. Gene selection was carried out by the support vector machines method with bootstrapping, which allowed us 1) ranking the genes that were most important for classification quality and appeared most frequently in the classifiers (bootstrap-based feature ranking, BBFR); 2) ranking the samples, and thus detecting cases that were most difficult to classify (bootstrap-based outlier detection). The accuracy of PTC diagnosis was 98.5% for a 20-gene classifier, its 95% confidence interval (CI) was 95.9-100%, with the lower limit of CI exceeding 95% already for five genes. Only 5 of 180 samples (2.8%) were misclassified in more than 10% of bootstrap iterations. We specified 43 genes which are most suitable as molecular markers of PTC, among them some well-known PTC markers (MET, fibronectin 1, dipeptidylpeptidase 4, or adenosine A1 receptor) and potential new ones (UDP-galactose-4-epimerase, cadherin 16, gap junction protein 3, sushi, nidogen, and EGF-like domains 1, inhibitor of DNA binding 3, RUNX1, leiomodin 1, F-box protein 9, and tripartite motif-containing 58). The highest ranking gene, metallophosphoesterase domain-containing protein 2, achieved 96.7% of the maximum BBFR score.

Total thyroidectomy and adjuvant radioiodine treatment independently decrease locoregional recurrence risk in childhood and adolescent differentiated thyroid cancer.

UNLABELLED: We sought to assess whether extensive surgical treatment, postsurgical radioiodine therapy, or both decrease the risk of locoregional recurrence (LR) after curative primary treatment in children and adolescents diagnosed with differentiated thyroid cancer (DTC) at age

[Hypoparathyroidism after surgery on thyroid cancer: is there a delayed chance for recovery after a prolonged period of substitutive therapy?]. / Niedoczynnosc przytarczyc po operacji raka tarczycy: czy istnieje szansa na opóznione samoistne wyrównanie funkcji gruczolów?

INTRODUCTION: Transient and persistent hypoparathyroidism (HPT) belong to the well known complications of total thyroidectomy performed because of thyroid carcinoma. The true frequency of persistent hypoparathyroidism is often higher than estimated in the reports published by the specialized centers with low rate of complications. THE AIM OF THE STUDY: Investigation whether the repeated check-up, performed over 2 years post thyroidectomy, reveals some cases of recovery in patients diagnosed with persistent HPT post thyroid cancer surgery. MATERIAL AND METHODS: In total, 115 patients were included into the study, all of them treated with vitamin D derivatives and calcium supplementation. In 17 of them a diagnosis of transient hypoparathyroidism was made on the basis of evaluation performed 6 months after surgery, the remaining 98 were diagnosed with persistent HPT. Parathyroid (PTH) function was reevaluated after withdrawal of active vitamin D derivatives for 10 days and of calcium carbonate for two days during the hospital stay in patients admitted for radioiodine scan, thus after thyroxine withdrawal. The control group consisted of 123 DTC (differentiated thyroid carcinoma) patients without parathyroid dysfunction. On the basis of intact PTH serum level and calcium and phosphorus estimations HPT was unequivocally confirmed in 49 patients (50%). The remaining 49 patients exhibited normal PTH level and in 43 (86%) of them Ca(2+) level was also within normal range, thus delayed, recovery from HPT was stated. RESULTS: Our results indicate that reevaluation of hypoparathyroidism post total thyreoidectomy is necessary, as delayed recover of parathyroid dysfunction is a frequent phenomenon. We also propose criteria of reevaluation of HTP in patients on chronic substitutive therapy.

[Completion total thyroidectomy in children with differentiated thyroid cancer]. / Radykalizacja leczenia operacyjnego zrósnicowanego raka tarczycy u dzieci.

INTRODUCTION: The optimal surgical treatment of children with differentiated thyroid cancer remains an important point of discussion. Especially the need for completion operation is questioned in young patients. Our objective was to examine the rate of residual neoplastic disease after non radical initial operation. MATERIAL AND METHODS: From the 235 children diagnosed with differentiated thyroid cancer, 131 (56%) needed completion operation due to incomplete primary surgery. Completion operation involved thyroid bed, lymph nodes or both respectively in 91 (39%), 13 (6%) and 27 (11%) cases. Risk factors responsible for residual disease were evaluated by means of logistic regression analysis. RESULTS: Residual disease was detected in 46 (35%) of reoperated children (25% in thyroid bed and 85% in lymph node of lateral neck compartment). Sex and age did not influence the risk of residual disease in thyroid bed or lymph nodes. Papillary type of cancer and multifocality increased risk of residual disease in thyroid bed respectively by the factor of 15 (95% CI: 2-125) and 2.3 (95% CI: 1.2-4.4). Infiltration of thyroid capsule did not correlate with the risk of residual disease. Lymph node metastases in primary operation increased risk of residual disease by the factor of 16 (95% CI: 1.2-245). Histopathology, multifocality of primary tumour or infiltration of lymph node capsule did not influence the risk of residual disease in lymph nodes of lateral neck compartment. CONCLUSIONS: In children with differentiated thyroid cancer residual disease is diagnosed in about 1/3 of non radically operated cases. This high incidence justifies completion operations. The risk of residual disease is significantly increased in papillary thyroid cancer, multifocal tumours and cases with lymph node metastases.

[Optimization of 131I ablation in patients with differentiated thyroid carcinoma: comparison of early outcomes of treatment with 100 mCi versus 60 mCi]. / Optymalizacja leczenia uzupelniajacego jodem promieniotwórczym u chorych na zróznicowanego raka tarczycy: porownanie wczesnych wynikow leczenia aktywnoscia 100 i mCi 60 mCi.

INTRODUCTION: The aim of this study was to compare the early outcomes between two groups of patients with differentiated thyroid carcinoma (DTC) who received 60 or 100 mCi of (131)I for remnant ablation. MATERIAL AND METHODS: 224 DTC patients with primary tumor > 1 cm of diameter or multifocal were randomised into prospective clinical trial. Patients with extrathyroideal extension of primary tumor and nodal metastases or M1 were not enrolled. 99 patients received 60 mCi, and 125--100 mCi of radioiodine as the first ablative dose. RESULTS: The effectiveness of thyroid ablation was evaluated after one year, during endogenous TSH (thyroid stimulating hormone) stimulation, and after two years during Lthyroxine therapy. Whole body scintigraphy (WBS) was performed under thyroxine withdrawal and thyroglobulin serum level was assessed. Distant micrometastases were detected in 9.8% of patients by post-therapy WBS, 11 patients in group A treated with 60 mCi and 11 in group B treated with 100 mCi. In other patients no symptoms of persistent disease were detected. At one year follow up full remission was diagnosed in 176 patients: 76 in group A and 100 in group B. The remaining ones, 13.3% and 11.2% respectively, received the second course of (131)I for remnant ablation. There were no statistically significant differences in Tg (thyroglobulin) serum level either 12 or 24 months after 131I treatment. CONCLUSIONS: Our evaluation of early efficacy of adjuvant radioiodine treatment in low risk DTC patients shows no differences between two radioiodine activities - 60 and 100 mCi in relation to thyroid ablation. Thus, the activity of 60 mCi is recommended.

[Indications for surgery of thyroid cancer based on bioptate molecular examination]. / Wskazania do leczenia operacyjnego raka tarczycy na podstawie badania molekularnego bioptatu.

INTRODUCTION: In differentiated thyroid cancer (DTC) the differentiation between reactive and metastatic lymph nodes is difficult at the early stages of metastasis. The aim of the study was to assess the results of fine needle aspiration (FNA) samples examination by the use of RT-PCR for Tg mRNA. The special attention was directed to the evaluation of specificity of TgRNA estimation. MATERIAL AND METHODS: The group consisted of 193 DTC patients with suspicion of lymph node recurrence and at least one positive RT-PCR result. Thyroglobulin RT-PCR was conducted in residual material left after preparation of cytological smears from FNA specimens. Primer spanning exons 3-5 were used with 39 cycles of PCR. RNA isolation control and cDNA amplification were carried out using GAPDH starters. 308 lymph node biopsies were included. RESULTS: 246 positive results for Tg RNA were observed in the analyzed group, 71.1% confirmed by FNA. Among other 71 results, in which cytological examination did not correspond unequivocally to molecular findings, in 34 metastases were confirmed both by cytological and clinical examination. There were 11 patients operated due to the positive serial molecular examination only. In 10 (91%) of them DTC metastases were confirmed. So, the positive predictive value of the molecular result ranged between 75-89% and the negative one was 100%. CONCLUSIONS: In DTC patients RT-PCR Tg mRNA is helpful in qualification of suspicious lymph nodes to surgery in DTC patients. At the negative cytological finding, the positive molecular result constitutes an indication for early surgery.

[Relapse of differentiated thyroid carcinoma in low-risk patients]. / Nawrót zróznicowanego raka tarczycy u chorych z grupy niskiego ryzyka.

INTRODUCTION: The low incidence of relapse in differentiated thyroid carcinoma (DTC), primarily treated by total thyroidectomy and (131)I ablation, stimulates the search for optimal follow-up algorithms which do not include too many tests but are not connected with a risk of missing early recurrence. The aim of the study was to analyze the impact of the routine follow up examinations for early detection of DTC recurrence in low risk DTC patients. MATERIAL AND METHODS: The group consisted of 617 DTC patients diagnosed in 1995-1996. In 513 (83%) total thyroidectomy was performed. 449 (73%) received ablative (131)I therapy. After primary approach complete remission (CR) was stated in 453 (73%), persistent disease in 116 (19%), asymptomatic hyperthyroglobulinaemia in 14 (2%). Patients with CR constituted the low risk group analyzed in this study. The median follow up was 4.16 yrs. RESULTS: Recurrent disease appeared in 28 (6%) patients (23 locoregional, 9 distant metastases, both in 4). Serum Tg (thyroglobulin) level at the moment of relapse diagnosis was detectable in 44% while neck sonography was the first examination to detect recurrence in 56% of cases. CONCLUSION: In the selected group of DTC patients treated by radical primary approach and showing a low risk of recurrence only half of all relapse cases are diagnosed by the rise of serum Tg level. Regular sonography contributes to the second half of diagnoses. Thus, a special weight should be put on neck sonography as the important element of regular follow up in low risk DTC patients.

Efficacy of lenvatinib in treating thyroid cancer.

INTRODUCTION: Radioiodine [RAI]-resistant advanced and progressive differentiated thyroid cancer [DTC], although rare, constitutes a real challenge as its prognosis is poor and available therapeutic options, until now, have been limited. Discovery of a crucial role of distinct tyrosine kinases in DTC pathogenesis opened up new options in systemic treatment. Lenvatinib is an oral potent multi kinase inhibitor [MKI] of different growth factor receptors including VEGFR1/Flt-1, VEGFR2/KDR, VEGFR3, FGFR1,2,3,4, PDGFR-ß as well as RET and KIT signaling networks. Its activity against RAI-refractory DTC was demonstrated in clinical studies fulfilling evidence-based medicine [EBM] criteria. The drug showed acceptable tolerance and manageable toxicity. AREAS COVERED: published results of phase II and III studies and other reports evaluated the efficacy and safety of lenvatinib in DTC and in medullary thyroid carcinoma. EXPERT OPINION: Currently there are two different MKIs, lenvatinib and sorafenib, which have demonstrated effectiveness against RAI-refractory DTC. However, to date, the question of which drug should be chosen for first line treatment remains open. The other question: when to start the treatment seems to be no less important. Whether disease progression, even by RECIST, is enough to initiate a therapy or tumor burden also plays an important role? EBM study, to resolve these issues, is our task for the nearest future.