Adjuvant external beam radiotherapy for locally invasive papillary thyroid cancer. Issue 6 (8th January 2019)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Megwalu, Uchechukwu C.; Orloff, Lisa A.; Ma, Yifei
• Is Part Of: Head & neck. Volume 41:Issue 6(2019)
• Page Start: 1719
• Page End: 1724
• Publication Date: 2019-01-08
• Subjects: propensity score -- radiotherapy -- SEER program -- survival -- thyroid cancer; Head -- Diseases -- Periodicals; Neck -- Diseases -- Periodicals; Head -- Periodicals; Neck -- Periodicals; Face -- Periodicals; 617.51059
• DOI: 10.1002/hed.25639
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1043-3074

Abstract

Abstract: Background: The goal of this study was to assess the impact of adjuvant external beam radiotherapy (EBRT) on survival in patients with locally invasive papillary thyroid carcinoma. Methods: Propensity score analysis was performed on 870 patients with surgically resected T4 papillary thyroid carcinoma, identified in the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results Database between 1988 and 2013. Results: EBRT was associated with worse overall survival (OS) (HR 1.60, 95% CI 1.18‐2.16) and disease‐specific survival (DSS) (HR 1.58, 1.09‐2.30). Subset analysis of patients with major extrathyroidal invasion showed that EBRT was associated with worse OS (HR 1.53, 95% CI 1.04‐2.25), but not with DSS (HR 1.57, 95% CI 0.99‐2.50). Conclusion: Adjuvant EBRT, in the initial management of locally invasive papillary thyroid cancer, was not associated with a survival benefit. Future studies are needed to determine which subset of patients may benefit from adjuvant EBRT.