When Should Treatment with Radioactive Iodine Stop?

Newswise — While treatment with radioactive iodine (RAI) after surgery for thyroid cancer is a standard of care, R. Michael Tuttle, M.D., professor of medicine at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York City, asks: "How do we know if additional RAI is likely to produce significant clinical benefit?" Or, "How do we know when to stop treating with RAI?"

Dr. Tuttle will offer answers at the American Thyroid Association's National Thyroid Cancer Workshop II to be held January 23 " 24, 2009 at the Loews Miami Beach Hotel, Miami Beach, Florida. The session will be held Saturday, January 24, 2009 from 11:30 a.m. to noon in Americana 3, 2nd level.

"It may be time to stop RAI when additional treatment is unlikely to produce a significant clinical benefit even if the patient is not cured, or if the patient still has progressive disease, and when a post-therapy scan is still positive," said Dr. Tuttle. "We can determine if additional RAI is likely to produce a significant clinical benefit by looking at individual features, such as age, histology, site of disease, by diagnostic whole body scan, PET scan and determining if there has been previous objective evidence of benefit."

Dr. Tuttle notes that brain and bone metastases tend to be refractory to cure with RAI and he emphasizes that there are "many tools in the modern toolbox."

Members of the media can find additional information at the ATA's Media Room, the Lucina Room, 3rd floor, Loews Miami Beach Hotel.

The American Thyroid Association (ATA) is the lead organization in promoting thyroid health and understanding thyroid biology. The ATA values scientific inquiry, clinical excellence, public service, education, collaboration, and collegiality. ATA members are physicians and scientists who work to enhance the understanding of thyroid physiology and pathophysiology, improve diagnosis and treatment of thyroid diseases, and promote the education of physicians, patients, and the public about thyroid cancer. Thyroid diseases are the most disorders of the endocrine system, affecting almost 13 million Americans.