Characteristics and Management of Papillary Thyroid Microcarcinoma in the United Arab Emirates: Experience from a Large Tertiary Hospital

BACKGROUND: Recent guidelines in the management of papillary thyroid microcarcinoma (PTMC) recommend limiting surgery. However, trends in the characteristics and management of PTMC from the Middle East and North Africa region is lacking. OBJECTIVES: To determine the clinical features, management strategy, and outcomes of PTMC in a large tertiary care center in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). PATIENTS AND METHODS: This retrospective study included all patients diagnosed with PTMC (i.e., size ≤10 mm) at Tawam Hospital, Al Ain, UAE, between 2008 and 2019. Tumor histopathology, management strategy, and outcomes were the primary analyzed variables. RESULTS: A total of 213 patients with PTMC met the inclusion criteria, of which 83.6% were women and 58.7% were Emiratis. The majority had the classical tumor subtype (76.1%) and tumor of size 5–10 mm (71.4%). Multifocal disease was present in 41.1% and lymph node metastasis (LNM) in 16.6% of the patients. According to the 2015 American Thyroid Association categorization, the majority (93.9%) had a low-risk disease, and all except one patient had Stage 1 disease. Total thyroidectomy was performed in 91.1% of the patients, and 47.9% received radioiodine (RAI) therapy. None of the patients were under active surveillance strategy. RAI treatment was used more often in patients with non-incidental tumors, larger tumor size, multifocal disease, positive LNM, tumors in the intermediate/high ATA category, and those who underwent total thyroidectomy or neck dissection (for all, P < 0.05). After a median follow-up of 32.4 months, about 73% had an excellent response to dynamic risk stratification assessment, and only one patient had disease recurrence. CONCLUSIONS: The majority of the patients had low-risk PTMC, yet most patients underwent total thyroidectomy, and almost 50% were treated with RAI ablation. Further studies are needed to determine if these trends are also present regionally and to explore reasons for not adopting a less aggressive approach in this indolent tumor.