Erschienen in:
11.03.2020 | Invited Commentary
Percutaneous Microwave Ablation for Benign, Symptomatic Thyroid Nodules: Wave of the Future?
verfasst von:
Alaina D. Geary, Frederick Thurston Drake
Erschienen in:
World Journal of Surgery
|
Ausgabe 7/2020
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Excerpt
Thyroid nodules are common, and the majority are benign and asymptomatic, requiring no intervention [
1]. However, some patients with benign thyroid nodules develop mass-effect symptoms, such as swallowing difficulties, pressure sensation in the neck, or chronic cough/throat-clearing that may improve with treatment. Surgical extirpation of these nodules via thyroid lobectomy or total thyroidectomy remains the primary treatment modality due to its long track record of safety and wide availability. Increasingly, however, thermal ablation therapies have been shown to offer an effective minimally invasive option to reduce nodule size—and therefore symptoms—in patients with benign disease based on fine needle aspiration (FNA) results. These percutaneous therapies do not carry some of the risks associated with surgery such as scarring, need for thyroid replacement therapy, and need for general anesthetic, [
2] but surgeons, endocrinologists, and patients have expressed concerns about other potential risks, including nodule recurrence, missed malignancy, and thermal damage to surrounding structures that may be vulnerable, in particular the recurrent laryngeal nerve (RLN), the esophagus, or the skin. Studies on the safety and efficacy of percutaneous techniques are therefore of benefit to the community of clinicians who care for patients with thyroid disease. …
