Thyroid Carcinoma in Riyadh

Abstract

Thyroid carcinoma is uncommon or very rare in the West. However, heretofore no documented study has been carried out in Saudi Arabia. This study is a retrospective analysis of the pathological aspects of thyroid cancer in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, between 1979 and 1985. Out of a total of 482 surgically removed thyroids, 82 (17%) were found to have carcinoma and the majority of these, 78 (95%), had a differentiated histology. Of the latter, papillary carcinoma was found in 68 (87%) patients, compared to an incidence range of 34 -80% from some Western populations. The male/female ratio was 1:1.9 and the majority of our patients (63%) were relatively young, in their second or third decades.Husseini Wali, Adnan Mofti, Siraj Malaika, D. M. Sabah, Thyroid Carcinoma in Riyadh. 1986; 6(3): 211-213 MeSH

Fine-Needle Aspiration Biopsy for the Routine Screening of Saudi Patients with Thyroid Nodules

“…This is similar to the pattern of thyroid malignancy in Saudis recently reported by Al-Tameem. 6 Despite the apparent relatively high incidence of thyroid malignancy among Saudis, as suggested by our data and as previously reported, [2][3][4][5][6] we conclude that FNAB has a valuable role as an additional screening method for Saudi patients with thyroid nodules.…”

“…However, using various combinations of the standard preoperative diagnostic techniques, only about 28% of surgically treated thyroid disease in Saudi Arabia is found to be malignant. 4,5 A prospective study was undertaken to determine if the routine use of fine-needle aspiration biopsy (FNAB) of the thyroid for preoperative screening of Saudi patients presenting at the King Fahad National Guard Hospital with mass lesions of the neck thought to be of thyroid origin would assist in properly selecting patients for surgery. The study was designed to answer the question whether routine thyroid nodule FNAB as an additional screening test would prove safe, accurate, and useful in a patient population thought to have a relatively high incidence of both thyroid nodules and thyroid malignancy.…”

“…2,3 Additionally, thyroid cancer has been found in a relatively high percentage of thyroidectomy specimens in Saudis ranging from 17% up to 25%. [4][5][6] Benign thyroid nodules generally do not require surgery. However, using various combinations of the standard preoperative diagnostic techniques, only about 28% of surgically treated thyroid disease in Saudi Arabia is found to be malignant.…”

A Study of 875 Cases of Thyroid Cancer Observed Over a Fifteen-Year Period (1975–1989) at the King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Centre

“…5,7,8,11,13,14,17 In previously published studies from the Middle East, the thrust has been to report the general experiences of cancers afflicting many different body organs (including the thyroid) in a comparatively small number of patients [2][3][4]6,14,[16][17][18][19] rather than a specific study addressing TC as such. Our study, in contrast, is free of the aforementioned problems.…”

“…Published information available from Saudi Arabia and the Middle East so far on the subject of TC is not only severely limited in its scope and the number of cases studied, [1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14][16][17][18][19][20][21][22][23] but also is biased insofar as they have included patients undergoing surgery for diverse reasons 5,[7][8][9]13,16,17,19,20 with findings of TC on retrospective analyses of surgically removed thyroid specimens. 5,7,8,11,13,14,17 In previously published studies from the Middle East, the thrust has been to report the general experiences of cancers afflicting many different body organs (including the thyroid) in a comparatively small number of patients [2][3][4]6,14,[16][17][18][1...…”