Thyroid Carcinoma: Do We Need to Treat Men and Women Differently?

Abstract

Background: For differentiated thyroid carcinoma, gender-specific differences exist in regard to incidence, age at onset, tumor stage, and recurrence, but causative factors remain to be elucidated. Possible and likely contributors are genetic and hormonal differences. While some of these factors are known to be differently distributed between the sexes, like, for example, BRAF-mutation and estrogen levels, their role in thyroid cancer initiation or promotion awaits further investigation.

Summary: Apart from generally accepted risk factors for differentiated thyroid carcinoma, an apparent gender disparity of thyroid cancer with a general female predominance, an age-dependent difference in growth acceleration during the reproductive years, and a peak at the time of entering menopause have been demonstrated. Hormonal status and hormonal receptor mediation seem to be most likely to contribute to the differences in thyroid cancer phenotypes of males and females. However, specific cause-and-effect pathways have not yet been determined.

Key messages: Female gender is overrepresented in the incidence of differentiated thyroid carcinoma, as it is in the more favorable tumor stages. Besides the assumption of gender-specific differences in general health awareness and behavior, hormonal age-dependent and gender-specific factors appear to be contributory. In the advanced stage of thyroid cancer, males are overrepresented. Therefore, the real cause of gender differences in thyroid cancer is likely due to a mixed effect. Present knowledge does not favor different treatment modalities of thyroid carcinoma according to gender.

Keywords: Differentiated thyroid carcinoma; Gender disparity; Genetics; Hormonal status.