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Chemosensitivity of anaplastic thyroid carcinoma and poorly differentiated thyroid carcinoma
H Asakawa1, T Kobayashi, Y Komoike
1Second Department of Internal Medicine, Osaka University Medical School, Japan.
Background:
The prognosis of anaplastic thyroid carcinoma (ATC) and poorly differentiated thyroid carcinoma (PDTC) is very poor because of their resistance to chemotherapy.
Materials And Methods:
We retrospectively evaluated the response to chemotherapy of 14 patients with ATC and examined the in vitro chemosensitivity of primary cultures of one ATC and five PDTCs from six recent patients.
Results:
As assessed at one month after treatment, one patient had a partial remission (PR), 3 had no change (NC), and the other 10 progressed (PD). The mean survival of all 14 patients was 3.4 months (PD; 2.3 months, PR or NC; 6 months). Five of the tumors (one ATC and four PDTCs) were resistant to all drugs examined: adriamycin, cisplatin, cyclophosphamide, etoposide, and carboplatin; cells from one PDTC were sensitive to adriamycin alone. Although five patients had administration of anti-cancer agents, none showed a response to chemotherapy.
Conclusion:
most ATCs and PDTCs are very resistant to anti-cancer agents. In vitro chemosensitivity testing may prevent the administration of ineffective chemotherapy.