Abstract
To evaluate the long-term effects of skin angioma irradiation, a recall programme was established which included the systematic recalculation of the radiation dose to the skin and the thyroid. 22% of the 6229 patients contacted had a dermatological examination which revealed cutaneous dystrophy in 81% of the 1137 exposed angiomas and in 39% of the 208 unexposed angiomas. The risk of dystrophy (telangiectasia, hypopigmentation, superficial and subcutaneous atrophy) was 12.1 higher ( P < 0.0001) among patients who had received a surface skin dose above 30 Gy than among those who had received a dose of 10 Gy or less. The relative risk for each dystrophy component increased significantly ( P < 0.001) with surface skin dose. Furthermore, 14 basal cell carcinomas (BCC) were observed in 12 patients from the exposed group for all quantities of radiation, with a mean latency period of 22 years. No BCC was observed for a surface skin dose below 10 Gy. Thyroid testing was done on a subgroup of 431 patients whose thyroid gland had been particularly exposed during angioma irradiation. After recalculation, the dose delivered to the gland was below 1 Gy in 98% of patients. Only 13 thyroid nodules were discovered (1 hot and 12 cold). 1 patient with a cold nodule had a malignant thyroid tumour 21 years after irradiation. He belonged to the group of 7 patients who had received a thyroid dose above 1 Gy. Although no morphological abnormality was found in 98% of the tested patients, most (92%) had a thyroid iodine content below 15 mg (the standard French value), while a raised serum thyroglobulin level (> 30 ng/ml) was observed in 17%. This might confer a higher risk of subsequently developing thyroid nodules.
Published Version
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