Anaplastic thyroid cancer: a retrospective analysis of 120 cases

Anaplastic Thyroid Cancer [ATC] is one of the most lethal malignancies with very short survival and extremely poor treatment outcome. ATC accounts for 2-5% of all thyroid cancers worldwide with an annual incidence of about 2/million. To review the natural history and treatment outcome of ATC patients treated at King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Centre [KFSH and RC] located at Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Retrospective review of 120 Saudi cancer patients collected from registry data at KFSH and RC from 1976-2008. Search key words included: thyroid cancer, anaplastic, undifferentiated and not otherwise specified. Search was not restricted to particular age, gender, treatment or tumor size. Demographic information, baseline patient characteristics including date of diagnosis, type of treatment and date of death were obtained from KFSH and RC registry data and Saudi death registry. A total of 120 cases were identified at our cancer centre from 1976 to 2008. Of these total, 73 were females [60.8%] and 47 were males [39.2%]. The average age at diagnosis was 63.34 +/- 12.8 years. Thirty-four patients underwent surgery [28.3%], 52 had a palliative radiation treatment [43.3%] and only 5 had chemotherapy [4.2%]. The median survival was 53 days [0-457]. Our review proves that ATC is rapidly fatal cancer and is unresponsive to currently available therapeutic options. More research is needed to understand the tumor biology and novel treatment options

Nasopharyngeal carcinoma in Saudi Arabia: clinical presentation and diagnostic delay

Nasopharyngeal carcinoma is commonly advanced at diagnosis. In this study we evaluated the clinical presentation, diagnostic delay and factors affecting delay in nasopharyngeal carcinoma. Data were collected prospectively for 307 newly diagnosed patients, including detailed demographic data, disease history, health care consultations and referral process. Diagnostic delay was classified as patient, professional and overall. Neck lump and nasal obstruction were the commonest presenting symptoms. There was a significant association between delay time of >/= 3 months and advanced stage. Patient's age and otological symptoms were associated with increased overall delay time. Advanced clinical stage at diagnosis was associated with paitents' sociodemographic characteristics