Abstract 1651P
Background
Synchronous lateral neck dissection (SLND) performs total thyroidectomy in conjunction with lateral neck dissection for lateral neck lymph node metastasis. In metachronous lateral neck dissection (MLND), after thyroidectomy, lateral neck dissection (LND) is performed for recurrence of lateral neck lymph nodes discovered during follow-up. The purpose of this study was to compare the surgical outcomes of SLND and MLND in patients who underwent thyroid surgery.
Methods
This retrospective study reviewed the medical records of 1760 patients who underwent LND from June 2000 to December 2016. Of these, 1613 patients underwent thyroidectomy and SLND at diagnosis. In 147 patients, only thyroidectomy was performed at the time of diagnosis, and MLND was performed when recurrence to the lateral neck lymph node was confirmed.
Results
During a median follow-up of 93.8 (range, 6.3-233.0) months, 110 patients had a recurrence in any lesion. There was no significant difference between the SLND group and MLND group (6.1% and 8.2%, p=0.317). The number of patients with stimulated thyroglobulin under 1ng/mL was 33.7% and 46.9% in the SLND group and MLND group, respectively (p=0.001). There was no significant difference in the patients who showed a biochemical incomplete response in each group (29.5%, 24.5%, p=0.199). The mean cumulative radioactive iodine dose was 314.2±183.1 mCi in the MLND group and 252.6±143.7 mCi in SLND group, showing a significant difference (p<0.001). The median follow-up period was 90.7 months (range, 12.3-200.8) in the SLND group and 119.3 months (range, 12.6-233.1) in the MLND group, showing a significant difference (p<0.001).
Conclusions
There is no difference in recurrence between MLND and SLND. MLND can be an appropriate treatment option for patients with thyroid cancer, as MLND shows better biochemical responses.
Clinical trial identification
Editorial acknowledgement
Legal entity responsible for the study
The authors.
Funding
Has not received any funding.
Disclosure
All authors have declared no conflicts of interest.