Thyroid Cancer

Ablation Therapy in Thyroid Cancers

Thyroid nodules are 5-10% likely to become cancerous. 75% of these are papillary cancers with a very good prognosis. Since papillary cancers with a diameter of 1-2 cm grow very slowly, ultrasonographic follow-up is actively performed instead of surgery. However, most of them grow slowly or are operated on due to patient anxiety.

For papillary cancers smaller than 2 cm, ablation is a very good treatment option. Radiofrequency or microwave ablation methods are generally preferred. In recent years, cryoablation has also been applied. In small papillary cancers, in experienced hands, the ablation procedure is completed in as little as 10-15 minutes and all cancerous tissue is killed. The dead tissue then either disappears completely or shrinks completely within a year. In this way, the patient gets rid of the cancer without losing his thyroid. There is no need to take thyroid medication for life. Recurrence or residue after the procedure is very rare. In such a case, the ablation procedure can be easily repeated.

Ablation is not yet a preferred method in other thyroid cancers. However, there are studies showing that ablation procedures are successful in the group called follicular lesion/cancer.

Ablation treatments can also be preferred in cases of cancer that have been previously operated on and then developed metastasis in the neck lymph nodes, especially due to the difficulty of the patient undergoing surgery again, and the results are quite good.