(a)
| Variable | rhTSH group (n = 18) | THW group (n = 27) | P |
|---|---|---|---|
| Age at DTC diagnosis | |||
| Mean ± SD years | 41 ± 16 | 51 ± 14 | 0.03 |
| ≥45 years old, % (n) | 78% (14) | 37% (10) | 0.01 |
|
| |||
| Female, % (n) | 83% (15) | 78% (21) | 0.30 |
|
| |||
| Histological classification, % (n) | |||
| Papillary, classical variant | 78% (14) | 82% (22) | |
| Papillary, follicular variant | 6% (1) | 11% (3) | 0.08 |
| Follicular | 16% (3) | 7% (2) | |
|
| |||
| T classificationa, % (n) | |||
| T3 | 72% (13) | 74% (20) | |
| T4a | 22% (4) | 19% (5) | 0.53 |
| T4b | 6% (1) | 7% (2) | |
|
| |||
| N classificationa, % (n) | |||
| N0/Nx | 67% (12) | 66% (16) | |
| N1a | 27% (5) | 22% (6) | 0.08 |
| N1b | 6% (1) | 18% (5) | |
|
| |||
| Patients with vascular invasion, % (n) | 22% (4) | 26% (7) | 0.33 |
|
| |||
| AJCC/UICC stageab, % (n) | |||
| I | 22% (4) | 63% (17) | 0.01 |
| II | 0% (0) | 0% (0) | |
| III | 50% (9) | 33% (9) | |
| IVa | 11% (2) | 4% (1) | |
| IVb | 17% (3) | 0% (0) | |
| IVc | 0% (0) | 0% (0) | |
|
| |||
| Lymph node dissection, n (%) | 78% (14) | 81% (22) | 0.49 |
AJCC: American Joint Committee on Cancer; DTC: differentiated thyroid carcinoma; rhTSH: recombinant human thyroid-stimulating hormone; SD: standard deviation; UICC: Union Internationale Contre le Cancer; THW: thyroid hormone withdrawal or withholding.
aAccording to AJCC/UICC classification, 6th edition of 2002 [32]; all patients had M0 staging confirmed by the postablation whole-body scan.
bSee Table 1(b) for explanation of the basis of staging in this cohort.