Blood Test for Thyroid Cancer
Posted on: Friday, 24 June 2005, 21:00 CDT
A blood test for thyroid cancer can detect persistent or recurrent disease before any trace of a tumor, an Ohio State University study found.
The study, by the Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center, Arthur G. James Cancer Hospital and Richard J. Solove Research Institute, examined how well a test for thyroid cancer can predict whether the disease will recur.
The test measures a protein known as thyroglobulin, or Tg, which is made by thyroid-cancer cells. The measurement is taken after a person is injected with a relatively new drug known as thyrotropin alfa, or Thyrogen.
The drug allows Tg testing without the sometimes debilitating side effects of hypothyroidism that otherwise accompany the test when stimulation testing is done.
We were surprised to find that even with relatively low thyroglobulin levels, and even when there is no sign of a tumor, about 80 percent of patients had a recurrence of their cancer within three to five years, says study author Richard T. Kloos.
The findings, published in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism, suggest people treated for the disease should be examined regularly for early signs of recurrence.
Source: United Press International
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User Comments (1)
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Posted by Jody Poljanski on 03/28/2007, 10:21 In researching information about my very low thyroglobulin levels, I have found your site which indicates that it could be an early detector for a thyroid cancer. I am also on a 'never ending' rollercoaster of TSH levels (0.08 to 42.0), and with my first ultrasound, they found nodules.... My doctor would not do a thyroid scan, but felt a repeat ultrasound would do... The second ultrasound was done and they told me the nodes that were detected 3 months previous, were indeed just 'scar tissue' from my RAI treatment.... Based on all of this stuff that makes no sense, the doctor feels that everything is okay and routine TSH monitoring (like we've done since 1999!!!) is sufficient. |
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