[A case of thyroid medullary carcinoma with multiple painful bone metastases successfully treated with strontium-89...

A 70-year-old man was diagnosed as thyroid medullary carcinoma with multiple bone metastases. He underwent total thyroidectomy and cervical lymph node dissection. After one year, the pain from his bone lesions was becoming severe. To relieve the pain, he was administered opioids and external-beam radiation therapy. However, he continued to have substantial multiple bone pain. We used combination therapy of strontium-89 chloride for the treatment of widespread multiple bone pain and external-beam radiation therapy for localized pain. That combination therapy was effective and improved the QOL of the patient. We used strontium-89 chloride four times within one year, and no serious side effects occurred during therapy. Our thoroughly investigated case suggests that strontium-89 therapy is one of the effective and safe therapies for patients with painful bone metastases of thyroid medullary carcinoma.