Personalized management of differentiated thyroid cancer in real life – practical guidance from a multidisciplinary panel of experts

Abstract

Abstract Purpose The standard of care for differentiated thyroid carcinoma (DTC) includes surgery, risk-adapted postoperative radioiodine therapy (RaIT), individualized thyroid hormone therapy, and follow-up for detection of patients with persistent or recurrent disease. In 2019, the nine Martinique Principles for managing thyroid cancer were developed by the American Thyroid Association, European Association of Nuclear Medicine, Society of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging, and European Thyroid Association. In this review, we present our clinical practice recommendations with regard to implementing these principles in the diagnosis, treatment, and long-term follow-up of patients with DTC. Methods A multidisciplinary panel of five thyroid cancer experts addressed the implementation of the Martinique Principles in routine clinical practice based on clinical experience and evidence from the literature. Results We provide a suggested approach for the assessment and diagnosis of DTC in routine clinical practice, including the use of neck ultrasound, measurement of serum thyroid-stimulating hormone and calcitonin, fine-needle aspiration, cytology, and molecular imaging. Recommendations for the use of surgery (lobectomy vs. total thyroidectomy) and postoperative RaIT are also provided. Long-term follow-up with neck ultrasound and measurement of serum anti-thyroglobulin antibody and basal/stimulated thyroglobulin is standard, with 123/131I radioiodine diagnostic whole-body scans and 18F-fluoro-2-deoxyglucose positron emission tomography/computed tomography suggested in selected patients. Management of metastatic DTC should involve a multidisciplinary team. Conclusions In routine clinical practice, the Martinique Principles should be implemented in order to optimize clinical management/outcomes of patients with DTC.