Lymph node metastasis in young and middle-aged papillary thyroid carcinoma patients: a SEER-based cohort study

Lymph node metastasis (LNM) occurs frequently in young papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC) patients, though the mortality rates are low. We aimed to analyze the relationship between age at diagnosis and LNM in PTC at a population level to elucidate the clinical behavior of PTC.

Data of adult patients with surgically treated PTC and follicular thyroid carcinoma (FTC) were identified from the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) database (2004-2015) to investigate the relationship between age and clinical characteristics by curve estimation. The adjusted odds ratio of age and LNM rate were determined.

A total of 50,347 PTC (48,166) and FTC (2181) (median age: 45 and 50 years, respectively) patients met the inclusion criteria; 44.5% of those with PTC (21,428) had LNM. Rank-sum test analysis indicated differences in distribution of age in LNM-positive and LNM-negative PTC. The relationship between age, tumor size and LNM showed a quadratic curve in PTC. The mean tumor diameter and LNM rate correlated linearly with age in 18-59-year-old patients. LNM rate decreased with age (R² = 0.932, P < .0001), especially women (R² = 0.951, P < .0001).

In young and middle-aged PTC patients, LNM may resolve spontaneously with delayed diagnosis and management. Active surveillance of low-risk PTC is justified.