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Review
. 2008 Dec;28(6):281-6.

Thyroid cancer: possible role of telemedicine

G Gibelli  1 , B Gibelli, F Nani
Affiliations
Review

Thyroid cancer: possible role of telemedicine

G Gibelli et al. Acta Otorhinolaryngol Ital. 2008 Dec.

Abstract
in English, Italian

Telemedicine is extremely useful when distance could hinder diagnostic procedures, disease management, or when severe side-effects may occur in patients not within easy reach of medical care and requiring prompt action and specific therapies. Telemedicine has been successfully adopted in the management of chronic patients, particularly in those with cardiologic or oncologic diseases. In the treatment of differentiated thyroid cancer, requiring long-term check-ups and visits as well as administration of high doses of levothyroxine (TSH - thyroid-stimulating hormone - suppression), also in elderly patients, telemedicine seems particularly indicated. Moreover, these distant monitoring techniques could not only reduce long-term management costs but also considerably decrease cardiovascular risks associated with these patients. The present review aims to provide some general information on telemedicine and its possible fields of action with regard to distant monitoring of patients with differentiated thyroid carcinoma.

La telemedicina è di grande utilità ogni volta in cui le distanze possano costituire un ostacolo alle procedure diagnostiche o alla programmazione dell’iter terapeutico, oppure quando si prospetti la necessità di fronteggiare effetti collaterali improvvisi alle terapie somministrate. L’uso della telemedicina si è già dimostrato vantaggioso nella gestione di pazienti cronici, in particolare pazienti con patologie cardiache o oncologiche. Nel trattamento dei carcinomi differenziati della tiroide, che prevede periodici controlli per moltissimi anni e utilizzo di L-tiroxina a dosi sovrafisiologiche (TSH-soppressione) anche in pazienti anziani, l’utilizzo delle tecniche di telemedicina sembra particolarmente indicato e potrebbe ridurre i costi della gestione a lungo termine di questi pazienti, oltre a ridurre notevolmente i rischi delle emergenze cardiologiche. In questa breve review sono riassunte le indicazioni generali della telemedicina e i possibili campi di utilizzo nel controllo a distanza di pazienti con neoplasie differenziate della tiroide.

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Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Use of telemedicine. Telemedicine can be usefully adopted in various steps of chronic diseases, from diagnosis to palliative care.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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