Factors favouring early nodal recurrence in papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC)

2110 Objectives Following surgical treatment of PTC, the use of adjuvant therapy with radioiodine ablation, and degree of TSH suppression, will depend on the patient9s risk of recurrent disease. The demographic and histologic features associated with early recurrence in PTC are not well understood. We have attempted to determine the factors associated with recurrence within five years of initial diagnosis. Methods A retrospective cohort study of PTC patients treated and followed at a single tertiary centre. 263 patients with PTC were examined using a fixed time window restriction protocol to identify 81 recurrent and 182 non-recurrent patients. All were treated and followed at a single center for the duration of the study.Demographic, histologic, surgical and adjuvant treatment data were collected on all patients and examined for univariate and multivariate correlations with recurrent PTC. Risk factors for recurrent PTC are defined by patient age, sex and tumour histologic characteristics. Results In the patient cohorts defined by tumours of similar size and with similar treatment regimes, it was clear that recurrent disease was favoured in younger patients ( Conclusions Patients at risk of early recurrence of PTC may be identified by young age, lymph node metastases and extra-thyroidal extension