Thioredoxin and tetraspanin 30 (CD63) as potential biomarkers for angioinvasion in papillary thyroid cancer

Papillary thyroid cancer (PTC) is a heterogeneous malignancy in which current prognostic markers often fail to distinguish between indolent and aggressive disease. The need for reliable biomarkers is especially urgent in cases of angioinvasion, where improved risk stratification could guide decisions such as extended surgery and early radioiodine therapy. This study evaluates thioredoxin (TRX), a redox-regulating protein, and tetraspanin 30 (CD63), a mediator of tumor-endothelial interactions, as potential non-invasive biomarkers of angioinvasive PTC. We analyzed serum samples from 90 patients—45 with histologically confirmed angioinvasion and 45 with low-risk, non-angioinvasive PTC. Both TRX and CD63 levels were significantly elevated in the angioinvasive group (p < 0.001). Logistic regression confirmed their strong association with angioinvasion, and ROC analysis showed high diagnostic performance: TRX (AUC = 0.85), CD63 (AUC = 0.83), and a combined model (AUC = 0.93). These findings support TRX and CD63 as promising biomarkers for detecting angioinvasion and guiding more individualized treatment in PTC.