Serum thyroglobulin in thyroid cancer and other thyroid diseases

The authors have used radioimmunoassay to measure blood serum thyroglobulin (TG) in 257 patients with benign processes and 118 ones with carcinoma of the thyroid and came to a conclusion that this method is unfit for the differential diagnosis between these conditions. Serum TG level is in good correlation with the results of treatment of thyroid carcinoma patients: in radically treated ones blood serum TG level reduces to the norm, and when recurrences or metastases develop it significantly increases. Therefore, radioimmunoassay is recommended for early detection of thyroid carcinoma recurrences and metastases in follow-up of patients with this condition.