Frequency of Distant Metastasis of Differentiated Thyroid Carcinoma- A Descriptive Analysis

Introduction: The presence of distant metastases is one of the important predictive factors of poor outcomes in patients with thyroid carcinoma. It is rarely observed at early presentation of differentiated thyroid carcinoma (DTC). This study aimed to analyze the frequency of distant metastasis in differentiated carcinoma of the thyroid. Methods: This cross-sectional observational study was conducted at the Department of Otolaryngology, Rajshahi Medical College Hospital, Rajshahi, and Department of Otolaryngology Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University (BSMMU), from July 2011 to Jun 2012. A total of 40 patients were selected as study subjects by simple random sampling technique. A descriptive analysis of data was carried out by using a statistical package for social science (SPSS) 22.0 for Windows. Result: In this study, a majority (35, 87.5%) of the patients suffered from papillary carcinoma, followed by (5,12.5%) follicular carcinoma. Considering the distant metastasis, 2 (5.71%) patients had metastasis to the lung among the patients with papillary carcinoma (n=35). 1 patient had lung metastasis and another 1 patient had bony metastasis among the follicular carcinoma patients. In terms of distant metastasis, 50% of the patients had distant metastasis from each papillary and follicular carcinoma. Conclusion: This study concludes that metastasis in differentiated thyroid carcinoma is not uncommon. Distant metastasis is more common in follicular thyroid carcinoma than papillary carcinoma. Lung and bone metastasis are common regarding the site of metastasis.