Meta-Analysis of Long Term Prognosis of Non-Operative Active Surveillance vs Completion Thyroidectomy after Hemithyroidectomy for Pathologically Proven Low Risk Papillary Thyroid Carcinoma

Abstract Background Differentiated thyroid cancer (DTC) includes papillary thyroid cancer (PTC) and follicular thyroid cancer (FTC) and encompasses approximately 94% of all thyroid cancers. The majority of DTC carries an excellent prognosis, with 10-year survival rates of over 90% and when examining the subset of low risk DTC (approximately 48% of all thyroid cancers), 10-year survival rates are in the order of 98%, irrespective of management algorithms. Aim of the Work The goal of the current study was to evaluate active surveillance versus total thyroidectomy in patients with low papillary thyroid carcinoma. Patients and Methods These studies included 35579 cases who were divided into 2 group: 15929 cases in hemithyroidectomy group and 19650 cases in thyroidectomy completion group. About 1265 articles were identified and after exclusion of article which did not fulfill the inclusion criteria, 18 research articles were enrolled in the current study. Results The patients' age range was between 40 and 50 years, with a higher incidence of PTC reported in the 3rd and 4th decades of life. Most patients were females, with no significant differences between the two groups. The mean tumor size was approximately 0.5 cm, and most tumors were smaller than 3 mm. Only two studies reported a significant difference in tumor size between the two groups, with larger tumors found in the TT group. Other studies reported no significant difference between the two groups. Conclusion Hemithyroidectomy with active surveillance is a good option for treatment low risk papillary thyroid cancers with lower postoperative complications rate, comparable recurrence rate and overall mortality rate. In spite that, 10- year DFS rates were lower with hemithyroidectomy.