根據(jù)一項(xiàng)最新報(bào)道，聯(lián)合加強(qiáng)放療、手術(shù)與化療能夠延長(zhǎng)罕見類型甲狀腺癌患者生存期。未分化甲狀腺癌非常罕見但是病程進(jìn)展較快，占診斷明確甲狀腺癌患者的5％。過去大多數(shù)甲狀腺腫瘤不能被手術(shù)切除，而放療與化療并不能延長(zhǎng)生存期，大多數(shù)患者診斷后生存期少于6個(gè)月。

但是一項(xiàng)由M.D.Anderson癌癥中心(Houston, TX, USA)科研人員進(jìn)行的研究發(fā)現(xiàn)，采用激進(jìn)的治療方法聯(lián)合手術(shù)、化療和加強(qiáng)放療能夠延長(zhǎng)未分化甲狀腺癌患者的生存期。

在1990～2000年期間科研人員治療了30例患者，中位數(shù)年齡是59歲。26患者癌癥已經(jīng)轉(zhuǎn)移到了身體其他部位，包括淋巴結(jié)、肺和氣管。7例患者由于癌體積過大不能手術(shù)切除。患者接受了三種不同治療方案，平均生存期10個(gè)月，三年內(nèi)總體生存率是27％。該項(xiàng)研究結(jié)果報(bào)道于2004年11月15日的《美國治療放射學(xué)和腫瘤學(xué)》。

M.D.Anderson癌癥中心放射腫瘤醫(yī)生Renaud de Crevoisier醫(yī)生說：“這種類型甲狀腺癌的特點(diǎn)是頸部癌組織快速進(jìn)展。因?yàn)槟[瘤生長(zhǎng)如此迅速，我們希望激進(jìn)的放療聯(lián)合手術(shù)化療能夠在腫瘤擴(kuò)散之前阻止這些快速生長(zhǎng)的腫瘤細(xì)胞，允許患者存活更長(zhǎng)時(shí)間。”

Combo Treatment Better for Thyroid Cancer

Combining accelerated radiation therapy with surgery and chemotherapy helps patients with rare types of thyroid cancer live longer, according to a new report. Anaplastic thyroid carcinoma is a very rare but aggressive form of the disease, affecting less than 5% of those diagnosed with thyroid cancer. Most thyroid tumors in the past could not be surgically removed and chemotherapy and radiation did not improve survival, with most patients living less than six months after diagnosis.

A new study by researchers at the M.D. Anderson Cancer Center (Houston, TX, USA), however, suggests that an aggressive approach combining surgery, chemotherapy, and accelerated radiation therapy can improve survival for patients with anaplastic thyroid carcinoma.

Investigators in the study treated 30 patients with a median age of 59 from 1990 to 2000. The cancer had metastasized in 26 of the patients to other regions, including the lymph node, lungs, and trachea. Surgery could not be performed on seven patients because the tumor had grown too large. With patients receiving the three different treatments, average survival was 10 months with a 27% overall survival rate at three years. The study was published in the November 15, 2004, issue of the journal the American Society of Therapeutic Radiology and Oncology.

“The problem with this type of thyroid cancer is the rapid evolution in the neck. However, since the tumors grow so quickly, we’re hopeful that aggressive radiation therapy combined with surgery chemotherapy can halt these fast-growing cancer cells before they can spread, allowing people with this disease to live longer,” said Renaud de Crevoisier, M.D., a radiation oncologist at M.D. Anderson Cancer Center.