Open Access

Outcome of initial lenvatinib treatment in patients with unresectable anaplastic thyroid cancer

  • Authors:
    • Hiroyuki Iwasaki
    • Soji Toda
    • Akari Takahashi
    • Katsuhiko Masudo
  • View Affiliations

  • Published online on: August 8, 2023     https://doi.org/10.3892/ol.2023.14002
  • Article Number: 416
  • Copyright: © Iwasaki et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of Creative Commons Attribution License.

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Abstract

Anaplastic thyroid cancer (ATC) is a very rare disease with a poor prognosis and with no established effective drug therapy. The present study aimed to report the outcomes of lenvatinib single‑agent therapy as an initial drug treatment in ATC, and to investigate its safety and efficacy. This retrospective cohort study included 56 patients with unresectable primary ATC, of whom 36 were treated with lenvatinib and 12 with weekly paclitaxel, and 8 patients who refused any drug treatment who received palliative care. The average survival in the lenvatinib group was 5.8 months, which was significantly longer than 2.0 months in the paclitaxel group (P=0.005). The efficacy of lenvatinib in the 36 patients with ATC, whose primary tumors were unresectable, was evaluated. The response rate was 33% and the median overall survival time was 5.0 months. A safety review indicated that lenvatinib should be used under the careful observation of local findings. Two patients, who showed a reduction with lenvatinib, underwent conversion surgery, which prolonged the prognosis in terms of avoiding events, such as asphyxia, fistula and hemorrhage due to tumor growth; however, the surgical margins were positive, indicating that complete remission was impossible even if surgical resection was performed. Therefore, starting with lenvatinib treatment and identifying a therapeutic drug based on genomic analysis is an acceptable treatment strategy for ATC while halting the disease progression.
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September-2023
Volume 26 Issue 3

Print ISSN: 1792-1074
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Spandidos Publications style
Iwasaki H, Toda S, Takahashi A and Masudo K: Outcome of initial lenvatinib treatment in patients with unresectable anaplastic thyroid cancer. Oncol Lett 26: 416, 2023
APA
Iwasaki, H., Toda, S., Takahashi, A., & Masudo, K. (2023). Outcome of initial lenvatinib treatment in patients with unresectable anaplastic thyroid cancer. Oncology Letters, 26, 416. https://doi.org/10.3892/ol.2023.14002
MLA
Iwasaki, H., Toda, S., Takahashi, A., Masudo, K."Outcome of initial lenvatinib treatment in patients with unresectable anaplastic thyroid cancer". Oncology Letters 26.3 (2023): 416.
Chicago
Iwasaki, H., Toda, S., Takahashi, A., Masudo, K."Outcome of initial lenvatinib treatment in patients with unresectable anaplastic thyroid cancer". Oncology Letters 26, no. 3 (2023): 416. https://doi.org/10.3892/ol.2023.14002