Clinical efficacy of iodine-125 (125I) seed implantation in patients with iodine-refractory differentiated thyroid cancer

Patients with radioactive iodine refractory differentiated thyroid cancer (RAIR-DTC) are resistant to radioactive iodine-131(I-131) treatment, and the clinical treatment for these patients is complex. The implantation of iodine-125 (I-125) seeds in the lesion has been successfully applied to treat malignant tumors, but there are few reports on using I-125 particles in the treatment of RAIR-DTC. This retrospective study collected data of 92 patients with RAIR-DTC. Patients treated with sorafenib were included in a control group (50 cases with 72 lesions) and patients treated with I-125 implantation were included in an observation group (42 cases with 68 lesions). The results showed that compared with those in the control group, the lesion volume was lower and the VVR was higher in the observation group (P<0.05). The Tg and Tg-Ab levels 6 months after treatment were lower than those before treatment in both groups, and the post-treatment Tg and Tg-Ab levels of the observation group were lower than those of the control group (P<0.05). The efficacy, disease control rate, and objective remission rate were not significantly different between the observation group and the control group (P>0.05). Overall survival of patients in the observation group was longer than that in the control group, chi(2) = 4.430, P = 0.035. The incidence of total adverse reactions in the observation group was lower than that in the control group (P<0.05). In conclusion, 125I seed implantation is effective in RAIR-DTC treatment as it can prolong the overall survival of patients while maintaining a safe profile.