Treatment for hyperthyroidism with radioactive iodine would greatly increase the risk of developing cancer, researchers from the National Cancer Institute and the National Institute of Health report in a report published on July 1 in JAMA Internal Medicine.
Hyperthyroidism is due either to inflammation of the thyroid or to a condition such as Graves’ disease. It manifests itself by the appearance of a mass in the neck, mood disorders, excessive sweating, tremors, insomnia, weight variations …. There are several treatments, including antithyroid drugs, radioactive iodine, partial or total removal of the organ.
RAI: a potentially carcinogenic treatment?
The researchers studied 18,805 people who suffered from this disease, without having a cancerous history, between April 2017 and January 2019. Their treatment? RAI, or radioactive iodine, developed since the 1940s.
Most of the people studied were women. Analysis of the treatment revealed a 12% increased risk for patients of developing breast cancer, and a 6% increased risk of developing a cancerous tumor in general.
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Hyperthyroidism: how to recognize Graves’ disease?
Hyperthyroidism: how to spot it?
