Three Characteristics of Thyroid Ultrasound, Taken Together, Predict Likelihood of Cancer

Because thyroid ultrasound is convenient and does not involve ionizing radiation (unlike nuclear medicine imaging), its use is increasing, and more thyroid nodules are being detected. In turn, biopsies and surgical procedures are performed more often; however, the rate of clinically significant malignancy remains low. In this retrospective case-control study, investigators linked 11,618 thyroid ultrasounds with a California state cancer registry to identify the ultrasound characteristics that distinguished 96 patients with thyroid cancer from 369 age- and sex-matched patients without cancer.

All but three cancer patients had 1 or more nodules ≥5 mm, but 56% of patients without cancer also had nodules of at least that size. Only three charact…