Inability of Radioiodine Remnant Ablation to Improve Postoperative Outcome in Adult Patients with Low-Risk Papillary Thyroid Carcinoma.

Abstract Objective To determine whether radioiodine remnant ablation (RRA) reduces cause-specific mortality (CSM) or tumor recurrence (TR) rate after bilateral lobar resection (BLR). Patients and Methods There were 2952 low-risk adult papillary thyroid cancer (LRAPTC) patients (with MACIS scores Results During 1955-1974, the 20-year CSM and TR rates after BLR alone were 1.0% and 6.8%; rates after BLR+RRA were 0% (P=.63) and 5.9% (P=.82). During 1975-1994, post-BLR 20-year rates for CSM and TR were 0.3% and 7.5%; after BLR+RRA, rates were higher at 0.9% (P=.31) and 12.8% (P=.01). When TR rates were examined separately for 448 node-negative and 317 node-positive patients, differences were nonsignificant. In 1995-2014, post-BLR 20-year CSM and TR rates were 0% and 9.2%; rates after BLR+RRA were higher at 1.4% (P=.19) and 21.0% (P Conclusion RRA administered to LRAPTC patients during 1955-2014 did not reduce either the CSM or TR rate. We would therefore not recommend RRA in LRAPTC patients undergoing BLR with curative intent.