BACKGROUND: Treatment and follow-up care procedures of thyroid cancer impose great challenges on survivors and could potentially affect their health-related quality of life (HRQoL). METHODS: Two authors systematically reviewed the available literature on HRQoL of thyroid cancer survivors. A PubMed literature search for original articles published until February 2011 was performed. Twenty-seven articles, published between 1997 and 2010, which met the predefined inclusion criteria, were subjected to a quality checklist. RESULTS: All selected studies, except one, were of adequate or good quality. Surgery had a negative impact on short-term HRQoL scores, but these scores returned to preoperational levels when time since surgery increased. Long-term thyroid hormone therapy (levothyroxine) can lead to abnormalities like hyperthyroidism. HRQoL was most affected during thyroid hormone withdrawal for radioiodine remnant ablation or follow-up procedures. The use of recombinant human thyroid stimulating hormone instead of hormone withdrawal leads to considerable improvements in HRQoL during follow-up testing. The results for (long-term) survivors were contradicting. While most (long-term) survivors report some specific long-lasting health problems, some studies found a lower HRQoL for thyroid cancer survivors compared with a healthy population or other reference groups, whereas other studies found similar HRQoL levels. CONCLUSION: This review indicates that thyroid cancer survivors generally have a similar or slightly worse HRQoL compared with the normative population; however, they report some specific medical problems after cancer treatment and follow-up tests, which have a direct negative impact on their current HRQoL and could affect their long-term HRQoL. Specific longitudinal survivorship studies are lacking.
BACKGROUND: Treatment and follow-up care procedures of thyroid cancer impose great challenges on survivors and could potentially affect their health-related quality of life (HRQoL). METHODS: Two authors systematically reviewed the available literature on HRQoL of thyroid cancer survivors. A PubMed literature search for original articles published until February 2011 was performed. Twenty-seven articles, published between 1997 and 2010, which met the predefined inclusion criteria, were subjected to a quality checklist. RESULTS: All selected studies, except one, were of adequate or good quality. Surgery had a negative impact on short-term HRQoL scores, but these scores returned to preoperational levels when time since surgery increased. Long-term thyroid hormone therapy (levothyroxine) can lead to abnormalities like hyperthyroidism. HRQoL was most affected during thyroid hormone withdrawal for radioiodine remnant ablation or follow-up procedures. The use of recombinant human thyroid stimulating hormone instead of hormone withdrawal leads to considerable improvements in HRQoL during follow-up testing. The results for (long-term) survivors were contradicting. While most (long-term) survivors report some specific long-lasting health problems, some studies found a lower HRQoL for thyroid cancer survivors compared with a healthy population or other reference groups, whereas other studies found similar HRQoL levels. CONCLUSION: This review indicates that thyroid cancer survivors generally have a similar or slightly worse HRQoL compared with the normative population; however, they report some specific medical problems after cancer treatment and follow-up tests, which have a direct negative impact on their current HRQoL and could affect their long-term HRQoL. Specific longitudinal survivorship studies are lacking.
Authors: Briseis Aschebrook-Kilfoy; Benjamin James; Sapna Nagar; Sharone Kaplan; Vanessa Seng; Habibul Ahsan; Peter Angelos; Edwin L Kaplan; Marlon A Guerrero; Jennifer H Kuo; James A Lee; Elliot J Mitmaker; Jacob Moalem; Daniel T Ruan; Wen T Shen; Raymon H Grogan Journal: Thyroid Date: 2015-12-01 Impact factor: 6.568
Authors: Bryan R Haugen; Erik K Alexander; Keith C Bible; Gerard M Doherty; Susan J Mandel; Yuri E Nikiforov; Furio Pacini; Gregory W Randolph; Anna M Sawka; Martin Schlumberger; Kathryn G Schuff; Steven I Sherman; Julie Ann Sosa; David L Steward; R Michael Tuttle; Leonard Wartofsky Journal: Thyroid Date: 2016-01 Impact factor: 6.568
Authors: Laticia A Valle; Revital L Gorodeski Baskin; Kyle Porter; Jennifer A Sipos; Raheela Khawaja; Matthew D Ringel; Richard T Kloos Journal: Thyroid Date: 2013-02 Impact factor: 6.568
Authors: Branka R Bukvic; Vladan R Zivaljevic; Sandra B Sipetic; Aleksandar D Diklic; Katarina M Tausanovic; Ivan R Paunovic Journal: Langenbecks Arch Surg Date: 2014-07-08 Impact factor: 3.445