DTC is the most common endocrine carcinoma and its routine treatment consists of total thyroidectomy and 131I thyroid remnant ablation.Currently,standard follow-up for DTC comprises Tg measurement and neck ultrasound as well as an additional radioiodine scan when indicated.As thyroid cells are assumed to be the only source of Tg in serum,circulating Tg serves as an excellent marker of persistent or recurrent disease in DTC follow-up.With the development of highly sensitive Tg assays,now it is possible to detect very low Tg concentrations which reflect minimal amounts of thyroid tissue without the need for TSH stimulation.This review is to introduce clinical implications of highly sensitive Tg assays.

Objective To investigate the effects of microRNA (miR)106a on the proliferation, apoptosis, migration and invasion of thyroid cancer cells in vitro.Methods 8505C and CGTH-W3 cell lines were used in the study.Overexpression and inhibition of miR106a were achieved by transfection of lentiviral vectors.The changes of gene expression were detected by quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR) and Western blot analysis.Cell viability and apoptosis were evaluated by MTT assay and flow cytometry analysis, respectively.The caspase-9 activities in parental CGTH-W3 and 8505C cells and transfected sublines were measured.Wound healing and Transwell invasion assays were performed to determine cell migration and invasion.Two-sample t test and one-way analysis of variance were used to analyze the data.Results The level of miR106a in 8505C was up-regulated when compared to that in CGTH-W3 cells (t=10.28, P<0.01).Scrambled control and miR106a(-) were also successfully transfected into cells.Inhibition of miR106a suppressed cell viability, migration and invasion while promoted apoptosis and caspase-9 activity of 8505C cells, with significant differences among 8505C, 8505C-control, 8505C-miR106a(-) cells (F=147.0, 19.2, 100.3, 537.8, 804.3;all P<0.01).Overexpression of miR106a promoted cell viability, migration and invasion while inhibited apoptosis and caspase-9 activity of CGTH-W3 cells, with significant differences among CGTH-W3, CGTH-W3-control, CGTH-W3-miR106a(+) cells(F=9.2, 13.3, 622.8, 12.3, 19.6, all P<0.01).In addition, miR106a may up-regulate the expression of MEKK2 and p-ERK1/2.Conclusion Acting as an onco-miR, miR106a might promote the proliferation, migration and invasion of thyroid cancer cells and inhibit their apoptosis in vitro.

Objective:To explore the expression of indoleamine 2, 3-dioxygenase 1(IDO-1), lymphocyte-activation gene 3 (LAG-3) and T cell immunoglobulin domain and mucin domain-containing molecule 3 (TIM-3) in differentiated thyroid cancer (DTC), and the value of them on prognosis.Methods:From May 2014 to November 2015, 119 DTC patients (33 males, 86 females, media age: 42 years) who underwent surgical treatment in Shanghai Sixth People′s Hospital were retrospectively analyzed. The expressions of IDO-1, LAG-3 and TIM-3 in the specimens were analyzed by immunohistochemistry and the expression differences between cancer tissues and normal tissues were analyzed by χ2 test. The correlation of IDO-1, LAG-3 and TIM-3 with clinical characteristics were analyzed using logistic regression analysis. The patients were followed up for 5 years, and the relationships of the progression-free survival (PFS) rate with the expressions of the three immune checkpoints were analyzed by Kaplan-Meier method, log-rank test and Cox proportional hazard models. Results:The overall 5-year PFS rate for 119 DTC patients (median follow-up time: 55(2-66) months) was 76.47%(91/119). The positive expression rates of LAG-3 and TIM-3 in cancer tissues were 21.85%(26/119) and 78.15%(93/119) respectively, which were significantly higher than those in normal thyroid tissues (7.34%(8/109) and 62.39%(68/109); χ2 values: 9.43, 6.81, both P<0.05). While the positive expression rate of IDO-1 was 70.59%(84/119) in cancer tissues, which did not show a significant difference from that in normal thyroid tissues (64.22%(70/109); χ2=1.05, P>0.05). Factors associated with the positive expression of LAG-3 included tumors with a single lesion (odds ratio ( OR)=0.248, 95% CI: 0.086-0.716, P=0.010). Log-rank test ( χ2=4.96, P=0.026) and multivariate Cox regression analysis (hazard ratio ( HR)=2.239, 95% CI: 1.013-4.592, P=0.046) suggested that LAG-3 positive expression was an independent risk factor of PFS. The same analysis of TIM-3 found no clinicopathological factors related to TIM-3 positive expression ( OR: 0.309-3.084, all P>0.05) and no association between TIM-3 positive expression and PFS ( χ2=0.008, P=0.929). Conclusion:The expressions of LAG-3 and TIM-3 are significantly increased in DTC tissues, and the higher expression of LAG-3 is associated with the worse prognosis, suggesting that LAG-3 may be a potential target for immunotherapy in DTC patients.

Objective:To explore the efficacy of percutaneous osteoplasty (POP) combined with 131I therapy in patients with bone metastases from differentiated thyroid carcinoma (DTC) and assess the survival. Methods:From Januray 2008 to January 2020, 29 DTC patients with bone metastases (16 males, 13 females, age range: 24-64 years) who received POP combined with 131I therapy in Shanghai Sixth People′s Hospital were retrospectively analyzed. Clinical data and characteristics of patients were analyzed. The efficacy and prognosis were evaluated based on the changes of serum thyroglobulin (Tg) and relieving condition of bone pain after the combined treatment. χ2 test was used to determine the association between clinical characteristics and efficacy, and Kaplan-Meier analysis was used to estimate the overall survival (OS) rate. Results:The biochemical response rate of serum Tg was 68.97% (20/29) after the combined treatment. For the influence on changes of serum Tg, whether or not combined with non-osseous distant metastasis, and cumulative dose of 131I treatment(≥22.2 vs <22.2 GBq) were statistically significant ( χ2 values: 5.448 and 4.371, both P<0.05). The rate of bone pain relief was 65.52%(19/29). Age (≥55 vs <55 years) and the cumulative dose of 131I treatment had statistically influences on bone relief ( χ2 values: 7.486 and 5.154, both P<0.05). The 5-years OS rate of patients was 87.68%, while the 10-years OS rate was 65.76%. Conclusion:POP combined with 131I therapy is effective on relieving the pain, reducing the serum Tg to some extent, and improving the long-term survival of DTC patients with bone metastasis.

Objective:To investigate the diagnostic efficacy and clinical application value of 99Tc m-diethylene triamine pentaacetic acid (DTPA) SPECT/CT imaging in cerebrospinal fluid leakage (CSFL). Methods:A total of 23 patients (11 males, 12 females; age (44.2±15.1) years) who underwent endoscopic repair surgery for suspected CSFL in Shanghai Jiao Tong University Affiliated Sixth People′s Hospital between April 2018 and January 2020 were retrospectively reviewed. All patients performed 99Tc m-DTPA SPECT/CT imaging, paranasal sinus high resolution CT (HRCT) and MRI before surgery. The diagnostic efficacies of 3 imaging techniques were calculated according to the result of surgery regarded as the golden standard. χ2 test was used to compare the qualitative and localized diagnostic efficacies of 3 imaging techniques for CSFL. Results:Of 23 patients, 21 were finally confirmed with CSFL and 24 leak locations were identified according to the results of surgery; the other 2 patients had no obvious CSFL and no leak location was found during the operation. The sensitivity and accuracy of 99Tc m-DTPA SPECT/CT, MRI and HRCT for the diagnosis of CSFL were 100%(21/21) and 95.7%(22/23), 85.7%(18/21) and 82.6%(19/23), 76.2%(16/21) and 69.6%(16/23), respectively. The accuracy of 99Tc m-DTPA SPECT/CT, MRI and HRCT for the diagnosis of leak location was 79.2%(19/24), 50.0%(12/24) and 45.8%(11/24), respectively. There was no statistically significant difference of diagnostic efficacies for CSFL among 3 imaging techniques ( χ2 values: 0.451-3.453, all P>0.05). For leak location, the diagnostic efficacy of 99Tc m-DTPA SPECT/CT was significantly better than that of MRI and HRCT ( χ2 values: 4.463, 5.689, both P<0.05). Conclusion:99Tc m-DTPA SPECT/CT imaging shows an excellent diagnosis efficacy not only for CSFL but also for leak location, which is helpful for guiding surgery.