Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

Changes in the outcomes of patients with anaplastic thyroid carcinoma over the past two decades

  • Original Article
  • Published:
Endocrine Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Objective

To assess the changes in survival outcomes among patients with anaplastic thyroid carcinoma in the US over the past two decades.

Methods

Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) database research data were reviewed, and patients with anaplastic thyroid carcinoma, who were diagnosed from 2004 to 2020 were evaluated. Kaplan-Meier survival estimates were conducted to examine differences in overall survival between three year-of-diagnosis groups (2004 to 2010; 2011 to 2016; and 2017 to 2020). Multivariable Cox regression analysis was then performed to explore the factors affecting overall survival.

Results

A total of 1804 patients with anaplastic thyroid carcinoma were included. Using Kaplan-Meier survival estimates, overall survival was better among patients diagnosed from 2017 to 2020 versus those diagnosed at earlier periods (P < 0.001). One-year survival estimates were 25% among patients diagnosed from 2017 to 2020 versus 15% for patients diagnosed from 2011 to 2016, and 19%, for patients diagnosed from 2004 to 2010. Using the multivariable Cox regression model, an earlier year of diagnosis was associated with worse overall survival compared to the diagnosis year 2017 to 2020 (HR for diagnosis 2004 to 2010 versus diagnosis 2017 to 2020: 1.170; 95% CI: 1.029 to 1.331, and HR for diagnosis 2011 to 2016 versus diagnosis 2017 to 2020: 1.251; 95% CI: 1.103 to 1.419).

Conclusions

While anaplastic thyroid carcinoma remains a deadly cancer, survival seems to be improving for the last few years compared to earlier years. There is still additional work to be done to improve the outcomes of those patients.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. W. Dong, T. Okamoto, X. Ji, J. Xiang, D. Zhang, P. Zhang et al. Conditional survival rate estimates for anaplastic thyroid cancer beyond the first year: an analysis of SEER data (2004-2019). Thyroid 33(4), 523–526 (2023)

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  2. M. Wang, T. Wei, R. Gong, J. Zhu, Z. Li, Risk stratification in patients with anaplastic thyroid carcinoma: role of age. Endocrine 77(2), 305–318 (2022)

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  3. T.N.M. Ngo, T.T.B. Le, T. Le, A. Bychkov, N. Oishi, C.K. Jung et al. Primary versus secondary anaplastic thyroid carcinoma: perspectives from multi-institutional and population-level data. Endocr. Pathol. 32(4), 489–500 (2021)

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  4. S. Saini, A.V. Maker, K.D. Burman, B.S. Prabhakar, Molecular aberrations and signaling cascades implicated in the pathogenesis of anaplastic thyroid cancer. Biochim. Biophys. Acta Rev. Cancer 1872(2), 188262 (2019)

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  5. W. Li, Y. Li, J. Li, H. Pang, Combination of novel therapies and new attempts in anaplastic thyroid cancer. Technol. Cancer Res. Treat. 22, 15330338231169870 (2023)

    Article  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  6. T.N. da Silva, R. Rodrigues, A. Saramago, C. Pires, M. Rito, M. Horta et al. Target therapy for BRAF mutated anaplastic thyroid cancer: a clinical and molecular study. Eur. J. Endocrinol. 188(1), vac011 (2023)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  7. A. Jannin, A. Escande, A. Al Ghuzlan, P. Blanchard, D. Hartl, B. Chevalier, et al. Anaplastic thyroid carcinoma: an update. Cancers 14(4), 1061 (2022)

    Article  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  8. M.E. Cabanillas, M.D. Williams, G.B. Gunn, S.P. Weitzman, L. Burke, N.L. Busaidy et al. Facilitating anaplastic thyroid cancer specialized treatment: A model for improving access to multidisciplinary care for patients with anaplastic thyroid cancer. Head Neck 39(7), 1291–1295 (2017)

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  9. Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) Program (www.seer.cancer.gov) SEER*Stat Database: Incidence - SEER Research Data, 17 Registries, Nov 2022 Sub (2000-2020) - Linked To County Attributes - Time Dependent (1990-2021) Income/Rurality, 1969-2021 Counties, National Cancer Institute, DCCPS, Surveillance Research Program, released April 2023, based on the November 2022 submission.

  10. https://seer.cancer.gov/seerstat/variables/seer/raresiterecode/. Accessed 14 May 2023

  11. V. Subbiah, R.J. Kreitman, Z.A. Wainberg, J.Y. Cho, J.H.M. Schellens, J.C. Soria et al. Dabrafenib and trametinib treatment in patients with locally advanced or metastatic BRAF V600–mutant anaplastic thyroid cancer. J. Clin. Oncol. 36(1), 7–13 (2017)

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  12. J. Simões-Pereira, R. Capitão, E. Limbert, V. Leite, Anaplastic thyroid cancer: clinical picture of the last two decades at a single oncology referral centre and novel therapeutic options. Cancers 11(8), 1188 (2019)

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  13. K.C. Bible, E. Kebebew, J. Brierley, J.P. Brito, M.E. Cabanillas, T.J. Clark Jr. et al. 2021 American Thyroid Association Guidelines for management of patients with anaplastic thyroid cancer. Thyroid 31(3), 337–386 (2021)

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  14. R.I. Haddad, L. Bischoff, D. Ball, V. Bernet, E. Blomain, N.L. Busaidy et al. Thyroid carcinoma, version 2.2022, NCCN clinical practice guidelines in oncology. J. Natl Compr. Cancer Netw. 20(8), 925–951 (2022)

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  15. A. Maniakas, R. Dadu, N.L. Busaidy, J.R. Wang, R. Ferrarotto, C. Lu et al. Evaluation of overall survival in patients with anaplastic thyroid carcinoma, 2000–2019. JAMA Oncol. 6(9), 1397–1404 (2020)

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  16. B. Lin, H. Ma, M. Ma, Z. Zhang, Z. Sun, I.Y. Hsieh et al. The incidence and survival analysis for anaplastic thyroid cancer: a SEER database analysis. Am. J. Transl. Res. 11(9), 5888–5896 (2019)

    PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Oncology, University of Alberta, Cross Cancer Institute, Edmonton, AB, Canada

    Omar Abdel-Rahman & Sunita Ghosh

Authors
  1. Omar Abdel-Rahman
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Sunita Ghosh
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Omar Abdel-Rahman.

Ethics declarations

Conflict of interest

OA-R: Honoraria/advisory boards with Amgen, Eisai, Bayer, Roche, Lilly, and Ipsen. SG: None.

Additional information

Publisher’s note Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Supplementary information

Rights and permissions

Springer Nature or its licensor (e.g. a society or other partner) holds exclusive rights to this article under a publishing agreement with the author(s) or other rightsholder(s); author self-archiving of the accepted manuscript version of this article is solely governed by the terms of such publishing agreement and applicable law.

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Abdel-Rahman, O., Ghosh, S. Changes in the outcomes of patients with anaplastic thyroid carcinoma over the past two decades. Endocrine 84, 155–159 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12020-023-03556-8

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12020-023-03556-8

Keywords

Search

Navigation