Long-term impact of initial surgical and medical therapy on young patients with papillary thyroid cancer and bilateral cervical metastases

Background There are few reviews on the clinical features and prognosis of young patients with papillary thyroid cancer and bilateral cervical metastases. We have investigated the long-term impact of initial surgical and medical therapy on such patients. Methods A retrospective study was performed on 24 young patients (11 females and 13 males) with papillary thyroid cancer and bilateral cervical lymph node metastases, ranging in age from 11 to 20 years (mean age, 16.6 years), who were treated in our institution from 1 January 1970 to 31 December 1985. Results All the patients in this group were followed up for 20 years. The survival of the patients at 20 years was 91.7%. The recurrence of local tumor and distant metastases was 20.8% and 12.5%, respectively. Based on analysis of the clinical data, we determined that the completeness of the surgical excision had a significant correlation with tumor recurrence. Conclusion These young patients with papillary thyroid cancer and cervical metastases have a good prognosis after suitable treatment. Chin Med J 2008;121(1):63-66