• 11/2/2006
  • New York, NY
  • David Douglas
  • CancerPage.com

The development of hypothyroidism appears to have a beneficial effect in patients with head and neck cancer, researchers report in the October issue of the Archives of Otolaryngology–Head and Neck Surgery.

Dr. Marc Nelson and colleagues at the Cleveland Clinic Foundation, Ohio note that there are reports of improved survival in hypothyroid patients with various cancers and thyroid hormones appear to have a role in neoplasia.

To determine whether this might be the case in advanced-stage head and neck squamous cell carcinoma, the researchers studied 155 patients who had undergone radiation therapy with or without chemotherapy and surgery where indicated.

In total 55 of the patients developed hypothyroidism, as indicated by a thyrotropin level greater than 5.5 mIU/L. Despite treatment for hypothyroidism, these patients had improved survival, lower recurrence rates and increased recurrence-free survival.

After adjusting for the time of detection, hypothyroidism was still associated with improved survival but this did not reach statistical significance (hazard ratio = 0.62, p = 0.12).

The researchers conclude that prospective studies would be needed to test the hypothesis that “maintaining patients at a clinically tolerable level of hypothyroidism may have a beneficial effect in regard to their neoplastic disease.”

In fact, senior investigator Dr. Marshall Strome told Reuters Health that “at this time it is my practice to leave those patients who are hypothyroid and asymptomatic, mildly hypothyroid. I believe that time and prospective controlled trials will prove the concept.”

Source:
Arch Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg 2006;132:1041-1046.