New Rochelle, NY, October 14, 2015—New, evidence-based recommendations from the American Thyroid Association (ATA) will help guide clinicians in managing patients with thyroid nodules, a common disorder that requires evaluation to distinguish benign nodules from malignancy, interpret biopsy results and molecular marker studies, and initiate risk assessment and cancer screening. The new ATA guidelines, which also focus on the diagnosis and management of differentiated thyroid cancer (DTC), an increasingly prevalent form of cancer, are published in Thyroid, a peer-reviewed journal from Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers and the official journal of the ATA. The guidelines are available free on the Thyroid website.
The “2015 American Thyroid Association Management Guidelines for Adult Patients with Thyroid Nodules and Differentiated Thyroid Cancer” are coauthored by the ATA Guidelines Taskforce on Thyroid Nodules and DTC, led by Chair Bryan Haugen, MD, University of Colorado School of Medicine, Aurora. Significant scientific advances in this field since the previous guidelines were released in 2009 have led to revised recommendations regarding the initial evaluation, biopsy criteria and interpretation of biopsy results, use of molecular markers, and management of benign thyroid nodules. The new guidelines for initial management of thyroid cancer focus on screening, staging, and risk assessment; surgical approaches; radioiodine therapy; and thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) suppression using levothyroxine. For long-term management of DTC, the recommendations include guidance on surveillance for recurrent disease using imaging and serum thyroglobulin, thyroid hormone therapy, management of recurrent and metastatic disease, when to consider participation in clinical trials or use of targeted/personalized therapies, and directions for future research.
“The updated guidelines integrate an impressive amount of new information and significant advances which impact the management of patients presenting with thyroid nodules and thyroid cancer. They provide a superb framework for the evaluation, treatment, and surveillance of these patients. Importantly, the guidelines also highlight areas in need of further investigation. The task force members are to be acknowledged for their enormous efforts in compiling this complex yet balanced document,” says Peter A. Kopp, MD, Editor-in-Chief of Thyroid and Associate Professor of Medicine, Division of Endocrinology, Metabolism, and Molecular Medicine, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago.
“Dr. Haugen and his colleagues on the DTC Guidelines Task Force are to be congratulated on their monumental task of reviewing a vast literature,” says Robert C. Smallridge, MD, President of the ATA, Professor of Medicine and former Chair, Endocrinology Division, Mayo Clinic, Jacksonville, Florida. “The field is changing rapidly, from the potential role of molecular markers to approaches to surgery, the most effective imaging, the role of 131-Iodine, risk assessment over time, and treatment of radioiodine refractory metastatic disease. The authors have provided a balanced list of 101 Recommendations that should assist practitioners in applying this information to the daily care of their patients.”
About the Journal
Thyroid, the official journal of the American Thyroid Association, is an authoritative peer-reviewed journal published monthly online with open access options and in print. The Journal publishes original articles and timely reviews that reflect the rapidly advancing changes in our understanding of thyroid physiology and pathology, from the molecular biology of the cell to clinical management of thyroid disorders. The complete Thyroid Journal Program also includes the highly valued abstract and commentary publication Clinical Thyroidology, led by Editor-in-Chief Jerome M. Hershman, MD, and published monthly, and the groundbreaking videojournal companion VideoEndocrinology, led by Editor Gerard Doherty, MD, and published quarterly. Complete tables of content and sample issues may be viewed on the Thyroid website.
About the Society
The American Thyroid Association (ATA) is the leading worldwide organization dedicated to the advancement, understanding, prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of thyroid disorders and thyroid cancer. ATA is an international membership medical society with over 1,700 members from 43 countries around the world. Celebrating its 92nd anniversary, the ATA delivers its mission—of being devoted to thyroid biology and to the prevention and treatment of thyroid disease through excellence in research, clinical care, education, and public health—through several key endeavors: the publication of highly regarded professional journals, Thyroid, Clinical Thyroidology, and VideoEndocrinology; annual scientific meetings; biennial clinical and research symposia; research grant programs for young investigators, support of online professional, public and patient educational programs; and the development of guidelines for clinical management of thyroid disease and thyroid cancer. The ATA promotes thyroid awareness and information through its online Clinical Thyroidology for the Public (distributed free of charge to over 11,000 patients and public subscribers) and extensive, authoritative explanations of thyroid disease and thyroid cancer in both English and Spanish. The ATA website serves as the clinical resource for patients and the public who look for reliable information on the Internet.
About the Publisher
Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers is a privately held, fully integrated media company known for establishing authoritative peer-reviewed journals in many promising areas of science and biomedical research, including Diabetes Technology & Therapeutics, Journal of Women’s Health, and Metabolic Syndrome and Related Disorders. Its biotechnology trade magazine, Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News (GEN), was the first in its field and is today the industry’s most widely read publication worldwide. A complete list of the firm’s more than 80 journals, books, and newsmagazines is available on the Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers website.
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