Year: 2016
Type: article
Study design: Observational Study
Abstract: The incidence of thyroid cancer in the United States has tripled in 30 years, rising rapidly since the 1990s.This substantial increase, chiefly comprising small papillary cancers, has been attributed to widespread diagnosis of subclinical disease. 1 Autopsy studies show a sizeable prevalence (5%-30%) of clinically occult thyroid cancer in asymptomatic persons.The rising diagnosis of thyroid cancer has been linked to increasing health care utilization and imaging practices, 2-4 which have led to the increased discovery of small papillary thyroid cancers, which generally exhibit indolent behavior.Physicians and the public have become more aware of challenges associated with the increased detection of thyroid cancer, 4 and this awareness is beginning to be reflected in clinical practice guidelines.For example, the 2009 American Thyroid Association guidelines provided more nuanced direction about biopsies, suggesting that the size and ultrasonographic appearance of a tumor be considered in deciding whether to biopsy it and discouraging the biopsy of smaller and more benign-appearing nodules. 5Similar recommendations were provided in 2010 by the American Association of Clinical Endocrinology and National Comprehensive Cancer Network.Here, we examine recent national trends in thyroid cancer incidence.Methods | We analyzed the incidence of thyroid carcinoma, ageadjusted to the population of the United States in 2000, in the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results registry of the National Cancer Institute, a population-based registry that provides estimates of cancer incidence.Analyses were con-
Language: English
Subfield: Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism
Field: Medicine
Domain: Health Sciences
Open Access status: bronze
OpenAlex ID: W2341103865