Overview of the 2015 American Thyroid Association guidelines for managing thyroid nodules and differentiated thyroid cancer.

The last few years have witnessed numerous publications addressing the management of thyroid nodules and differentiated thyroid cancers. The purpose of this review is to provide a simplified summary of the newly released guidelines by the American Thyroid Association. A systematic approach has been recommended to evaluate a thyroid nodule through clinical assessment, measurement of serum Thyroid Stimulating Hormone, neck ultrasonography and Fine Needle Aspiration where appropriate. This is followed by cytology analysis using the Bethesda scoring system to detect malignancy. Once diagnosed, thyroid cancers need to be staged and risk stratification needs to be applied to develop further treatment plans. Lastly, several recommendations have been presented to assure proper follow-up and support for thyroid cancer patients regardless of the treatment received.