ETA2024 Poster Presentations Anaplastic thyroid cancer (10 abstracts)
1Habib Thameur Hospital, Ears Nose and Throat, Tunisia; 2Salah Azaiez Institute, Ent, Carcinologic Head & Neck Surgery, Tunisia
Aim: To study the clinical, evolutive and therapeutic features of anaplastic thyroid carcinoma.
Methods: Retrospective descriptive study of twenty patients managed for anaplastic thyroid carcinoma over a twenty-one-year period from January 2003 to December 2023.
Results: The mean age of our patients was 60 years. The average consultation time was 41.5 months, with extremes ranging from two months to 20 years. Eighteen patients consulted due to the appearance of a rapidly growing thyroid gland mass. One patient was referred for recent dyspnea. The appearance of polyadenopathy was the reason for consultation in another case. Three patients had dysphonia. The swelling was rigid in 85% of cases. Physical examination revealed cervical lymph nodes enlargement in ten patients. Vocal cord paralysis was noted in five cases, and decreased vocal cord mobility in three. Ultrasound-guided thyroid cytopuncture was performed in eight cases, revealing undifferentiated carcinoma in six. Surgery was performed after an average of one week. Biopsy was performed in seven patients with unresectable tumors. Thyroidectomy was performed in thirteen cases. All our patients were referred for radiotherapy. The evolution was fatal in all cases. The mean survival time in our series was 4 months, with extremes ranging from one to six months.
Conclusion: Anaplastic thyroid carcinoma is a rare but aggressive tumour. Despite multiple therapeutic modalities, its prognosis remains poor, with a survival rate of only a few months.
Key words: Thyroid carcinoma, Anaplastic, Surgery, Radiotherapy, CT