Abstract
In the past three decades, the thyroid cancer incidence has surged globally. Herein, the Taiwan National Health Insurance database was used to identify thyroid cancer patients and to estimate the prevalence and incidence of thyroid cancer during 1997-2012. The Taiwan Cancer Registry and the National Death Registry databases were crosslinked to obtain information on the histological subtypes and survival rates. Joinpoint regression analysis was used for estimating the average annual percentage changes (APCs) in prevalence, incidence, and survival. The age-standardized incidence of thyroid cancer increased from 5.66 per 100,000 person-years in 1997 to 12.30 per 100,000 person-years in 2012, with an average APC of 5.1 (6.9 in males, 4.6 in females). Thyroid cancer was more prevalent in patients with high socioeconomic status and in urban areas. Papillary carcinoma was the most abundant subtype, with a 2.9-fold increase of incident cases noted during 1998-2012 (from 80.6% to 89.8% of all cases). Among the different treatments, partial thyroidectomy increased the most (average APC, 17.3). The overall survival rates by sex and subtype remained stable over time, with 5-year survival rates of 90.2% in 1997 and 92.4% in 2010. In conclusion, 2.2- and 4.2-fold increases in the incidence and prevalence of thyroid cancer, respectively, were observed during 1997-2012 in Taiwan. The surging incidence of thyroid cancer but stable survival rates, and mainly increased in the papillary subtype, altogether imply enhanced detection of subclinical lesions. A true increase due to environmental carcinogens might also be responsible, but warrant further investigations.
Highlights
Thyroid cancer is the most common endocrine malignancy [1]
Thyroid cancer was more prevalent in patients with high socioeconomic status and in urban areas
Demographic data and geographic variations of patients with thyroid cancer The eligible population in our study comprised of 21,952,273 registered National Health Insurance (NHI) beneficiaries (49.33% male, 50.67% female) in 2012 in Taiwan
Summary
Thyroid cancer is the most common endocrine malignancy [1]. According to GLOBOCAN 2012, thyroid cancer accounted for 2.1% of the total cancer incidence in 2012, with a worldwide age-standardized incidence rate of 4.0 (1.9 in males, 6.1 in females) per 100,000 person-years and a worldwide mortality rate of 0.5 (0.3 in males, 0.6 in females) per 100,000 persons in 2012 [2]. Thyroid follicular cells give rise to two major groups of thyroid cancers: differentiated (papillary and follicular) and undifferentiated (anaplastic, poorly differentiated) carcinomas [3]. Papillary and follicular thyroid carcinomas are more prevalent and have a relatively favorable prognosis, while the poorlydifferentiated and anaplastic subtypes are much more rare and aggressive. Papillary thyroid carcinoma is the most abundant subtype, comprising 85-90% of all thyroid cancers. Follicular thyroid carcinomas account for only 2-5% of thyroid cancers [3]. The follicular subtype is more aggressive than papillary carcinoma, mainly because it can metastasize via vascular invasion. It often presents with metastasis at the time of diagnosis
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
