IS IT WORTH SUPPRESSING TSH IN LOW- AND INTERMEDIATE-RISK PAPILLARY THYROID CANCER PATIENTS BEFORE THE FIRST DISEASE ASSESSMENT?

Abstract Objective Guidelines recommend TSH suppression before the first response to treatment assessment in papillary thyroid cancer (PTC) patients. The aim of this study was to assess the rate of structural disease (SD) in low- and intermediate-risk PTC patients according to TSH levels measured 1 year after primary treatment. Methods A consecutive, prospective series of low- and intermediate-risk PTC patients with 3-years follow-up was collected. TSH, thyroglobulin, anti-thyroglobulin antibodies, and neck ultrasonography 1 and 3 years after primary treatment were analyzed. Recurrence risk and disease status at 1 year were defined according to the American Thyroid Association guidelines and as the presence or absence of SD after 3 years. Patients were grouped according to TSH level at 1-year: group-1 TSH 2uUI/mL. Results This study included 263 patients (70.9% female, median age 47.2 years) of whom the risk of recurrence was low in 170(6...