Effects of I-131 ablation/metastasis treatment on DNA damage parameters in patients with differentiated thyroid cancer: a pilot study

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to ascertain how radioactive iodine therapy (RAIT). affected the DNA damage in the lymphocytes of differentiated thyroid cancer (DTC) patients. Materials and Methods: Our study included 21 DTC patients in total, with a mean age of 45.09±10.02 years. Six (28.6%) of the 21 patients had a low dose of RAIT (≤30 mCi), eleven (52.4%) received a moderate dose of ablation (31 to 100 mCi), and four (%19) received a high dose (>100 mCi). Before, one week, and six months following treatment, venous blood samples were obtained from each patient. DNA damage was evaluated using the COMET assay. For a quantitative analysis of DNA damage, a number of characteristics were assessed, including head length, tail length, head intensity, tail intensity, and tail moment. Results: Compared to before treatment (23.83±9.82), tail intensity levels were considerably lower after treatment (1st week and 6th months) (18.30±6.48 vs. 18.06±5.58). Following therapy (1st week and 6th months), the head intensity values were statistically substantially higher (81.69±6.48 vs. 81.93±5.58) than they were prior to treatment (76.16±9.82). Six months after therapy, the tail moment was lower than it was before treatment (5.24±2.51 vs. 8.04±3.86). Conclusion: Treatment has a beneficial effect on peripheral blood cells, as seen by the increase in head intensity and decrease in tail intensity and moment after treatment. By triggering repair mechanisms, RAIT may have activated protective effects on the DNA of lymphocytes.