Abstract | BACKGROUND:
Anaplastic thyroid cancer is a rare and lethal disease. It accounts for 1-2% of thyroid malignancies, but specific mortality is higher than 90%. It is an aggressive locoregional disease with a high metastatic capacity. There is no agreement with regards to the best treatment. We analysed the results of treatment in a mestizo population treated in the National Cancer Institute (Mexico). METHODS: RESULTS: The median age was 64.5 ± 13.2 years. Females were more affected (female/male ratio: 2.6:1); 21 cases occurred in women (72.4%), and eight in males (27.6%). The most common manifestations were neck enlargement (93.10%) and hoarseness (71.31%). The median tumour size was 8 cm (range: 4-20 cm). The percentage of cases which presented in clinical stage IVA was 10.3%, with 62.1% presenting in clinical stage IVb and 27.6% presenting in clinical stage VIc. Complete resection (R0) (p = 0.05), radiation doses of higher than 33.1 Gy (p = 0.04), and multimodal therapy were associated with better survival. Surgery plus radiotherapy with or without systemic treatment (p = 0.006). The median overall survival was 119 days (IC 95%, 36.3-201.6). Six-month, one-year and two-year survival was 37.9%, 21% and 13%, respectively. CONCLUSION: Complete surgical resection is associated with better survival but is very difficult to achieve due to aggressive biological behaviour. Multimodal therapy is associated with better survival and a better quality of life. There is a need for more effective systemic treatments as extensive surgical resections have little overall benefit in highly invasive and metastatic disease.
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Authors | Zaki Antonio Taissoun Aslan, Martín Granados-García, Kuauhyama Luna-Ortiz, Francisco Javier Guerrero-Huerta, Antonio Gómez-Pedraza, Silvio A Namendys-Silva, Abelardo Meneses-García, Juliana María Ordoñez-Mosquera |
Journal | Ecancermedicalscience
(Ecancermedicalscience)
Vol. 8
Pg. 449
( 2014)
ISSN: 1754-6605 [Print] England |
PMID | 25114721
(Publication Type: Journal Article)
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