Endocrine Abstracts

Thyroid cancer is the most common endocrine malignancy and over the past 40 years there has been a dramatic rise in incidence globally, largely due to the detection of small low-risk papillary cancers as a consequence of increased use of thyroid ultrasonography. The vast majority of these differentiated thyroid cancers are small, often incidental, slow growing and carry an excellent prognosis. The management of these tumours has undergone a dramatic change in the last 5-10 years and a “less is more” approach has been adopted in most national and international guidelines. Whilst differentiated thyroid cancer was almost universally treated with total thyroidectomy, radioiodine remnant ablation and long term TSH suppression, the majority of the tumours are now treated with limited surgery and subsequent surveillance. There is also mounting evidence that active surveillance without any thyroid surgery and minimally invasive ablative procedures are safe and adequate treatment alternatives. This symposium will outline the current national and international guidelines relating to managing low risk thyroid cancer and highlight the most up to date evidence on novel management pathways.