Radioiodine total body scan versus serum thyroglobulin levels in follow-up of patients with thyroid cancer

Journal Article · Fri Jan 01 00:00:00 EST 1982 · Surgery; (United States)

OSTI ID:5428208

Colacchio, T A; LoGerfo, P; Colacchio, D A; Feind, C

Two groups of patients were studied to compare the efficacy of serum thyroglobulin (Tg) levels to /sup 131/I total body scans in the follow-up of patients with thyroid cancer. All of the group of 30 patients without recurrence had undetectable Tg levels on and off thyroid hormone replacement, and all had negative total body scan results although eight patients showed uptake in remnant thyroid tissue. In the second group of 37 patients with documented recurrent or metastatic disease, 34 (92%) had positive serum Tg levels, although the levels in five of these patients were undetectable while on thyroid replacement, and 31 (84%) had positive total body scan results. The false negative results of the two tests were not overlapping, and of those with positive Tg levels, 29 showed a significant increase once thyroid hormone therapy had been withdrawn. We conclude that although the percentages of positive Tg levels and body scan results in patients with recurrent disease are similar, both tests are required to minimize the number of patients with undiagnosed metastases. Second, thyroid-stimulating hormone suppression has a definite although unpredictable effect on serum Tg levels in patients with thyroid cancer, and thyroid hormone should be withdrawn prior to measurement of serum Tg to minimize the number of false negative results.

• Research Organization: Department of Surgery, College of Physicians and Surgeons of Columbia University, New York
• OSTI ID: 5428208
• Journal Information: Surgery; (United States), Vol. 91:1
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

62 RADIOLOGY AND NUCLEAR MEDICINE
59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES
IODINE 131
DIAGNOSTIC USES
METASTASES
DIAGNOSIS
BIOCHEMISTRY
CARCINOMAS
CHEMOTHERAPY
PATHOLOGY
PATIENTS
SCINTISCANNING
THYROGLOBULIN
THYROID
BETA DECAY RADIOISOTOPES
BETA-MINUS DECAY RADIOISOTOPES
BODY
CHEMISTRY
COUNTING TECHNIQUES
DAYS LIVING RADIOISOTOPES
DIAGNOSTIC TECHNIQUES
DISEASES
ENDOCRINE GLANDS
GLANDS
GLOBULINS
INTERMEDIATE MASS NUCLEI
IODINE ISOTOPES
ISOTOPES
NEOPLASMS
NUCLEI
ODD-EVEN NUCLEI
ORGANIC COMPOUNDS
ORGANS
PROTEINS
RADIOISOTOPE SCANNING
RADIOISOTOPES
THERAPY
USES
550601* - Medicine- Unsealed Radionuclides in Diagnostics
550901 - Pathology- Tracer Techniques