• Lin Yan, Ying Liu, WenHui Li, YaLin Zhu, Jinling Wang, Mingbo Zhang, Jie Tang, Ying Che, Hui Wang, Shurong Wang, and Yukun Luo.
• Department of Ultrasound, First Medical Center, Chinese PLA General Hospital, Beijing, China.
• Ann. Surg. 2023 May 1; 277 (5): 846853846-853.

ObjectiveTo report more than 5-year outcomes of ultrasound-guided thermal ablation (TA) for patients with solitary low-risk papillary thyroid microcarcinoma (PTMC) in a large multicenter cohort.BackgroundTA, including radiofrequency ablation (RFA) and microwave ablation (MWA) have been used in patients with low-risk PTMC who refuse surgery or active surveillance. However, its clinical value remains controversial.Materials And MethodsThis retrospective multicenter study included 474 patients with solitary low-risk PTMC treated with TA (357 for RFA; 117 for MWA) from 4 centers and followed up for at least 5 years. Disease progression including lymph node metastasis and recurrent tumors, volume reduction rate (VRR), tumor disappearance rate, complications, and delayed surgery were assessed. RFA and MWA outcomes were compared using propensity score matching.ResultsDuring the median follow-up period of 77.2 months, disease progression incidence, lymph node metastasis, and recurrent tumors rates were 3.6%, 1.1%, and 2.5%, respectively. Age below 40 years old, male sex, Hashimoto thyroiditis, and tumor size were not independent factors associated with disease progression by Cox analysis. The median VRR was 100% and 471 tumors disappeared radiographically. Eight patients experienced transient voice change (1.7%) which recovered within 3 months. None of the patients underwent delayed surgery because of anxiety. After 1:1 matching, no significant differences were found in the disease progression, VRR, tumor disappearance rate, or complications between RFA and MWA subgroups.ConclusionThis multicenter study revealed that TA was an effective and safe treatment for patients with solitary low-risk PTMC, which could be offered as a treatment option for the management for low-risk PTMC.Copyright © 2023 Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc. All rights reserved.

20 keywords...

hide…