Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 29, 2025

Generation of a Mouse Spontaneous Autoimmune Thyroiditis Model
Published on: March 17, 2023
Risk of Infertility in Reproductive-Age Patients With Thyroid Cancer Receiving or Not Receiving 131I Treatment: A
Chun-Yi Lin1, Cheng-Li Lin, Chia-Hung Kao
1From the Department of Nuclear Medicine, Changhua Christian Hospital, Changhua.
Background:
Fertility is the crucial concern for many survivors of cancer diagnosed as children, adolescents, and young adults. The objective of this study was to determine the risk of infertility in reproductive-age patients with thyroid cancer receiving or not receiving radioiodine treatment in Taiwan.
Methods:
This nationwide population-based cohort study was conducted using data obtained from the Taiwan National Health Insurance Database from 2009 to 2019. A total of 20,259 thyroid cancer patients aged from 15 to 50 years (8037 did not receive 131I treatment, and 12,222 received 131I treatment) and 20,259 controls were enrolled. A Cox proportional hazards model was applied to estimate the risk of infertility in thyroid cancer patients receiving or not receiving 131I treatment in terms of hazard ratios and 95% confidence intervals.
Results:
The incidence rates of infertility in thyroid cancer receiving 131I therapy, those not receiving 131I therapy, and controls were 5.55, 5.07, and 3.61 per 1000 person-years, respectively. Compared with thyroid cancer patients treated with a cumulative 131I dose of 4.44 GBq or less, the risk of infertility was not significantly increased in those treated with a cumulative 131I dose of more than 4.44 GBq (adjusted hazard ratio, 1.13; 95% confidence interval, 0.95-1.36).
Conclusions:
The greatest increased risk of infertility in reproductive-age patients with thyroid cancer is associated with the fact that the patient has thyroid cancer regardless of 131I administration. 131I treatment or cumulative dose of 131I greater than 4.44 GBq did not further increase the risk of infertility.
Related Concept Videos
Infertility in Males
Biological Effects of Radiation
Radiological Investigation I: X-ray and CT
Synthesis and Regulation of Thyroid Hormones
Upon reaching the thyroid gland, TSH stimulates the follicular cells' active uptake of iodide ions from the blood. The ions diffuse to the apical surface of the cells and are oxidized to iodine. The...
Spermatogenesis
Infertility in Females
Endometriosis, a condition characterized by abnormal growth of...

