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Published on: June 9, 2023
Longer-term recurrence rate after low versus high dose radioiodine ablation for differentiated thyroid Cancer in low
I Vardarli1, F Weidemann2, M Aboukoura2
1Department of Medicine I, Klinikum Vest GmbH, Knappschaftskrankenhaus Recklinghausen, Academic Teaching Hospital, Ruhr-University Bochum, Dorstener Str. 151, 45657, Recklinghausen, Germany. irfan.vardarli@alumni.uni-heidelberg.de.
Background:
Regarding the longer-term recurrence rate the optimal activity for the remnant thyroid ablation in patients with differentiated thyroid cancer (DTC) is discussed controversially. For the short-term ablation success rate up to 12 months there are already several meta-analyses. In this study we performed the first meta-analysis regarding the longer-term recurrence rate after radioactive 131-I administration.
Methods:
We conducted an electronic search using PubMed/MEDLINE, EMBASE and the Cochrane Library. All randomized controlled trials (RCTs) assessed the recurrence rate after radioactive iodine ablation in patients with DTC, with a follow-up of at least two years were selected. Statistics were performed by using Review Manager version 5.3 and Stata software.
Results:
Four RCTs were included in the study, involving 1501 patients. There was no indication for heterogeneity (I2 = 0%) and publication bias. The recurrence rate among patients who had a low dose 131-iodine ablation was not higher than for a high dose activity (odds ratio (OR) 0.93 [95% confidence interval (CI) 0.53-1.63]; P = 0.79). The mean follow-up time was between 4.25 and 10 years. The subgroup analysis regarding the TSH stimulated thyroglobulin values (< 10 ng/mL versus < 2 ng/mL versus ≤1 ng/mL) showed no influence on recurrence rate.
Conclusions:
For the first time we showed that the longer-term, at least 2-year follow-up, recurrence rate among patients who had 131-iodine ablation with 1.1 GBq was not higher than with 3.7 GBq.
