Current results of treatment for distant metastatic well-differentiated thyroid carcinoma.

Between 1960 and 1986, 37 patients were treated at M. D. Anderson Hospital and Tumor Institute, Houston, Tex, for metastases beyond the thyrocervical region arising from well-differentiated thyroid carcinomas. Patient, tumor, and treatment factors were analyzed in this group for their influence on survival. No specific factors achieved statistical significance; however, patients having more than one site of metastasis and patients whose metastases arose less than 5 years after treatment of the primary tumor tended to have shorter overall survival times. More than one modality of treatment was used in the majority of patients. Complete surgical resection of metastases offered the best chance for prolonged survival and palliation. With long survival times being the rule, several treatment modalities are often required to provide continuous palliation.