Abstract
Pulmonary testing was carried out in 12 of 35 consecutive cases of differentiated thyroid carcinoma metastatic to the lung, which were identified in a retrospective analysis covering the 22-yr period from 1962–1984. In 7 of the 12 patients, pulmonary function tests showed abnormalities. Impaired pulmonary function was associated with a poor prognosis. Four of the twelve patients died; each had impaired pulmonary function and their ages (12–65 yr) were similar to those still living (13–65 yr). Specific types of functional abnormalities were not associated with pulmonary metastases, and underlying pulmonary disease contributed to the findings in some patients. Four patterns were defined on chest radiographs: macronodular, micronodular, miliary, and normal, but these patterns did not correlate with outcome. Scintiscan patterns varied from normal to diffuse concentration of 131I. Generally, following therapy with radioiodine, fewer abnormalities on chest x-ray and less uptake of 131I in the lungs was noted. However, therapy with radioiodine did not improve pulmonary function. Pulmonary function testing appears to be a better predictor of outcome in patients with thyroid carcinoma metastatic to lung than chest x-ray appearance or scintigraphic scanning.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Samaan N., Schultz P., Haynie T., Ordonez N. Pulmonary metastasis of differentiated thyroid carcinoma: Treatment results in 101 patients. J. Clin. Endocrinol. Metab. 65: 376, 1985.
Woolner L Thyroid carcinoma: pathologic classification with data on prognosis. Semin. Nucl. Med. 1: 481, 1971.
Beierwaltes W.H., Nishiyama N., Thompson N., Copp J., Kubo A. Survival time and “cure” in papillary and follicular thyroid carcinoma with distant metastases: statistics following University of Michigan therapy. J. Nucl. Med. 23: 561, 1982.
Cady B., Sedgwich C., Meissner W., Wool M., Salzman F., Werber J. Risk factor analysis in differentiated thyroid cancer. Cancer 43: 810, 1979.
Leeper R. The effect of 131I therapy on survival of patients with metastatic papillary or follicular thyroid carcinoma. J. Clin. Endocrinol. Metab. 36: 1143, 1972.
Samaan N., Maheshwari Y., Nader S., Hill C., Schultz P., Haynie T., Hickey R., Clark R., Goepfert H., Ibanez M., Litton C. Impact of therapy for differentiated carcinoma of the thyroid: an analysis of 706 cases. J. Clin. Endocrinol. Metab. 56: 1131, 1983.
Massin J.-P., Savoie J.-C., Gamier H., Guiraudon G., Leger F., Bacourt F. Pulmonary metastases in differentiated thyroid carcinoma. Cancer 53: 982, 1984.
Rall J., Alpers J., Lewallen C., Sonenberg M., Berman M., Rawson R. Radiation pneumonitis and fibrosis: a complication of radioiodine treatment of pulmonary metastases from cancer of the thyroid. J. Clin. Endocrinol. Metab. 17: 1263, 1957.
Haynie T.P., Nofal M.M., Beierwaltes W.H. Treatment of thyroid carcinoma with 131I: Results at 14 years. JAMA 183: 303, 1963.
Nemec J., Zamrazil V., Pohunkova D., Rohling S., Holik F., Zeman V. Rontgenologische charakteristik von lungen metastasen des schildrusenkarzinoms mit bezug auf sein biologisches verhalten. Fortschr. Geb. Rontgenstr. Nuclearmed. 131: 261, 1979.
Morris J.F., Koski A., Johnson A.C. Spirometric standards for healthy non-smoking subjects. Am. Rev. Respir. Dis. 103: 57, 1971.
Harness J., Thompson N., Sisson J. Differentiated thyroid carcinomas. Arch. Surg. 108: 410, 1974.
Beierwaltes W.H. Indications and contraindications for treatment of thyroid cancer with radioactive iodine. Ann. Intern. Med. 27: 23, 1952.
Woolman S. Analysis or radioiodine therapy in metastatic tumors of the thyroid gland in man. J. Natl. Cancer Inst. 13: 815, 1953.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Aldrich, L.B., Sisson, J.C. & Grum, C.M. Pulmonary function in thyroid carcinoma metastatic to the lung. J Endocrinol Invest 10, 111–116 (1987). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03347168
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03347168