Gray, J.L., Singh, G., Uttley, L. orcid.org/0000-0003-4603-9069 et al. (1 more author) (2018) Routine thyroglobulin, neck ultrasound and physical examination in the routine follow up of patients with differentiated thyroid cancer—Where is the evidence? Endocrine, 62 (1). pp. 26-33. ISSN 1355-008X
Abstract
Purpose: Patients with differentiated thyroid cancer (DTC) typically have a favourable prognosis and recurrence as late as 45 years after diagnosis has been reported. International clinical guidelines for monitoring recommend routine thyroglobulin, ultrasound and physical examination for the detection of recurrence. The aim of this review was to systematically review whether routine monitoring using thyroglobulin (Tg), neck ultrasound and physical examination for recurrence in differentiated thyroid cancer patients is effective in improving patient survival and/or quality of life. Methods: Primary studies were retrieved via a comprehensive search of three electronic bibliographic databases (PubMed, Web of Science Core Collection and Cochrane Library) without time restriction. Eligible studies must have reported on disease-free patients with DTC subject to long-term routine surveillance. The primary and secondary outcomes of interest were overall survival (or other survival parameters) and quality of life, respectively. Results: Literature searches yielded 5529 citations, which were screened by two reviewers. 241 full texts were retrieved. No randomised controlled trials or two-arm cohort studies on the effectiveness of any of the three specified interventions were identified. However, three ‘single-arm’ studies reporting long-term follow-up outcomes in patients undergoing regular surveillance were identified and appraised. Conclusions: This review highlights a lack of empirical evidence to support current use of routine surveillance in DTC. Although early detection is possible, routine surveillance may lead to unnecessary intervention.
Metadata
Item Type: | Article |
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Authors/Creators: |
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Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | © The Author(s) 2018. This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits use, duplication, adaptation, distribution, and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license, and indicate if changes were made. |
Keywords: | Thyroid cancer; Recurrence; Thyroglobulin; Ultrasonography; Palpation; Surveillance |
Dates: |
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Institution: | The University of Sheffield |
Academic Units: | The University of Sheffield > Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry and Health (Sheffield) > School of Health and Related Research (Sheffield) > ScHARR - Sheffield Centre for Health and Related Research |
Depositing User: | Symplectic Sheffield |
Date Deposited: | 05 Sep 2018 14:35 |
Last Modified: | 19 Apr 2024 11:12 |
Status: | Published |
Publisher: | Springer Verlag |
Refereed: | Yes |
Identification Number: | 10.1007/s12020-018-1720-3 |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:135233 |
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