Thyroid Cancer

TON - July 2013 Vol 6 No 6 — July 29, 2013

The thyroid gland, though relatively small, plays a large role in the function of the body. According to the American Thyroid Association (ATA), the gland “produces thyroid hormones which help the body use energy, stay warm and keep the brain, heart, muscles, and other organs working normally.”1 Although cancer of the thyroid and the treatments associated with the disease can affect these functions, early detection of this disease often results in a high survival rate and an acceptable quality of life. Let’s take a closer look at thyroid cancer.

The American Cancer Society (ACS) estimates that 60,220 new cases of thyroid cancer (45,310 in women and 14,910 in men) and 1850 deaths from thyroid cancer (1040 women and 810 men) will occur in 2013.2

Risk factors for thyroid cancer include gender and age. According to Cancer.net, women are 2 to 3 times more likely to develop thyroid cancer than men. About two-thirds of all thyroid cancer cases are found in people between the ages of 20 and 55 years.3

The ATA describes the following 4 types of thyroid cancer:

  1. Papillary carcinoma comprises 70% to 80% of all thyroid cancer cases.1
  2. 10% to 15% of thyroid cancer cases are follicular carcinoma.1
  3. Medullary carcinoma accounts for 5% to 10% of cases of thyroid cancer.1
  4. Less than 2% of all thyroid cancer cases are anaplastic carcinoma.1

The ACS advises that the best approaches to treating thyroid cancer often use 2 or more of the following methods: surgery, radioactive iodine treatment, thyroid hormone therapy, external beam radiation therapy, chemotherapy, or
targeted therapy.4

Based on SEER data from 2003 to 2009 among 18 geographic areas, the overall 5-year relative survival rate for patients with thyroid cancer was 97.7%.5

Although the survival rate is high for many patients with thyroid cancer, follow-up care is essential and may occur for many years, since “most thyroid cancers grow slowly and can recur even 10 to 20 years after initial treatment,” according to the ACS.6

Sources
1. http://www.thyroid.org/thyroid-cancer-faq/.
2. http://www.cancer.org/cancer/thyroidcancer/detailedguide/thyroid-cancer-key-statistics.
3. http://www.cancer.net/cancer-types/thyroid-cancer/risk-factors.
4. http://www.cancer.org/cancer/thyroidcancer/detailedguide/thyroid-cancer-treating-general-info.
5. http://seer.cancer.gov/statfacts/html/thyro.html.
6. http://www.cancer.org/cancer/thyroidcancer/detailedguide/thyroid-cancer-after-follow-up.

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