Radioiodine After Thyroidectomy in Patients with Low-Risk Differentiated Thyroid Cancer?

Surgery (either thyroidectomy or lobectomy) is the mainstay of treatment for patients with differentiated thyroid cancer. After thyroidectomy, many patients — particularly those whose cancers have intermediate- or high-risk characteristics — also receive radioiodine to ablate residual thyroid tissue or residual subclinical tumor. To determine whether patients with low-risk cancers benefit from postoperative radioiodine, researchers in France conducted this randomized trial that involved 776 patients with small, differentiated tumors and no evidence of lymph node involvement. Patients received either postoperative radioiodine or no radioiodine and were followed for 3 years.

The primary outcome was a composite of “functional events” (uptake of…