Changing Trends of Thyroid Cancer Clinical Characteristics and Treatment Pattern in South Korea: Insights from an Institutional Database and the Korean Cancer Center Registry Database
10.11106/ijt.2024.17.2.277
- Author:
Yung Jee KANG
1
;
Nayeon CHOI
;
Jungirl SEOK
;
Sun Wook KIM
;
Tae-Hyuk KIM
;
Jae Hoon CHUNG
;
Young-Ik SON
;
Man Ki CHUNG
Author Information
1. Department of Otorhinolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Samsung Medical Center, Sungkyunkwan University School of Medicine, Seoul, Korea
- Publication Type:ORIGINAL ARTICLES
- From:International Journal of Thyroidology
2024;17(2):277-285
- CountryRepublic of Korea
- Language:English
-
Abstract:
Background and Objectives:To analyze the clinical trends and treatment patterns of thyroid cancer in the recent decade in South Korea.
Materials and Methods:Two distinctive datasets, a single institutional database from 2009 to 2021 of differentiated thyroid cancer (DTC) patients (n=3145) and a nationwide database of the Korean Cancer Center Registry (KCCR) from 2005 to 2019 for patients (n=414,828) with all types of thyroid cancer, were analyzed. Annual incidence, the extent of thyroidectomy and neck dissection, T and N stages, and postoperative radioactive iodine (RAI) were investigated and descriptively presented.
Results:The institutional database demonstrated that the annual cases of DTC surgeries suddenly dropped in 2014, coinciding with a social debate on overdiagnosis in South Korea. Due to changes in the staging manual and management guidelines during the study period, lobectomy has been preferred more than total thyroidectomy and the number of anterior compartment neck dissections has decreased. However, cases with lateral neck dissection and T4 stage gradually increased, suggesting that social issue did not influence the incidence of advanced thyroid diseases. The KCCR database also supported a similar phenomenon that showed a recent increase in localized and regional disease after a shock from social controversy.
Conclusion:Our institutional and KCCR data findings collectively indicate a steady incidence in localized and regional thyroid cancer after the initial drop triggered by the 2014 controversy in South Korea.
