New Guidelines for Anaplastic Thyroid Cancer

By March 17, 2021 March 3rd, 2024 Past News Releases, Thyroid Cancer
American Thyroid Association

New Rochelle, NY, March 17, 2021—New guidelines for the diagnosis, evaluation, and treatment of anaplastic thyroid cancer (ATC) reflect the significant clinical and scientific advances that have occurred in the field since the previous guidelines were released. The American Thyroid Association® (ATA®) ATC Guidelines Task Force presents the new guidelines in the peer-reviewed journal Thyroid®, the official journal of the American Thyroid Association® (ATA®). Click here to read the Guidelines now.

“The present document represents the second ATA® ATC Guidelines (the first published in 2012) and the culmination of 4 years of multidisciplinary international effort, with strict attention to the published evidence, and inclusive of various stakeholders in the formulation of clinical recommendations and good practice statements,” state Task Force co-chairs Keith Bible, MD, PhD, Mayo Clinic and Electron Kebebew, MD, Stanford University School of Medicine, and coauthors.

ATC accounts for only a small percentage of thyroid cases overall, but it is the deadliest of any thyroid-arising tumor. The sudden onset and aggressive course of ATC require the rapid involvement of a multidisciplinary team to ensure immediate diagnosis, evaluation and treatment, as well as palliative care.

The new guidelines consider patients in whom aggressive treatment is medically appropriate and those for whom aggressive treatment is not medically appropriate. They focus on diagnostic and evaluation methods, including imaging and molecular tools. The Task Force also presents guidelines for surgical resection of ATC tumors, treating metastatic disease, the use of chemotherapy and immunotherapy, and future directions in ATC therapy.

“This is an especially challenging malignancy for both physicians and patients. This state-of-the-art, evidence-based guideline will greatly assist the multidisciplinary team taking care of patients with ATC and allow them to provide maximum benefit to patients and their families,” says Jacqueline Jonklaas, MD, PhD, ATA Secretary/Chief Operating Officer and Director of the Georgetown University Clinical Research Unit, Georgetown University.

The ATA®ATC Guidelines have been endorsed by leading organizations across the globe, including the American Association of Endocrine Surgeons, American Head and Neck Society, European Society of Endocrinology, International Association of Endocrine Surgeons, Korean Society of Head and Neck Surgery, Latin American Thyroid Society, and Society of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging.

About the Journal
Thyroid®, the official journal of the American Thyroid Association®, (ATA®) 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. Complete tables of content and a sample issue may be viewed on the Thyroid website. The complete Thyroid Journal Program includes the highly valued abstract and commentary publication Clinical Thyroidology®, led by Editor-in-Chief Angela Leung, MD and published monthly, and the groundbreaking videojournal companion VideoEndocrinology, led by Editor William Barry Inabnet, III, MD and published quarterly. Complete tables of content and sample issues may be viewed on the Thyroid website.

About the American Thyroid Association®
The American Thyroid Association® (ATA) is dedicated to transforming thyroid care through clinical excellence, education, scientific discovery and advocacy in a collaborative and diverse community. ATA® is an international professional medical society with over 1,800 members from 43 countries around the world. The ATA® promotes thyroid awareness and information through Clinical Thyroidology® for the Public, a resource that summarizes research for patients and families, and extensive, authoritative resources on thyroid disease and thyroid cancer in both English and Spanish. The ATA® website www.thyroid.org serves as a bonafide clinical resource for patients and the public who look for reliable thyroid-related information.  

About the Publisher
Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers is known for establishing authoritative peer-reviewed journals in many promising areas of science and biomedical research. A complete list of the firm’s more than 90 journals, books, and newsmagazines is available on the Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers website.