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Biomedical subjects

D Colacchio

Publications and source records attributed to D Colacchio.

4 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1979

Thyroglobulin in benign and malignant thyroid disease.

Thyroglobulin (TG) is a 19S glycoprotein produced by normal thyroids and almost all nonmedullary thyroid cancers. Radioimmunoassays measure serum levels of TG, and these levels are abnormally elevated in patients with metastatic thyroid cancer. Data from our study show that TG measurement is not effective in screening high-risk populations for thyroid cancer. Nevertheless, serum TG determinations are useful for assessing the presence and possibly the extent of residual or recurrent nonmedullary thyroid cancer in patients who have undergone total thyroidectomy.

Adenocarcinoma↗
PubMed1978

Serum clearance rates of immunologically reactive thyroglobulin.

Serum thyroglobulin levels have been shown to have a role in detecting the presence of residual or recurrent disease in most patients who have undergone total thyroidectomy for thyroid cancer. It has not yet been determined at what interval postoperatively to begin following serum thyroglobulin levels in these patients to detect residual disease. Eight patients who underwent total thyroidectomy were studied to determine the clearance rate of this glycoproteint. Serial samples were obtained pre- and postoperatively and clearance rate curves were plotted for each patient. The average half-life of thyroglobulin was 14 hours, with a range of 8 to 22 hours. Based upon these results, it appears that 4 weeks is a sufficient period of time to allow for the clearance of the residual thyroglobulin in patients undergoing total thyroidectomy. Elevated levels of serum thyroglobulin after this time represent residual thyroid tissue or the presence of metastatic thyroid carcinoma.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1977

Serum thyroglobulin and recurrent thyroid cancer.

Many thyroid malignancies are sufficiently differentiated to produce thyroglobulin both in situ and in perpipheral blood. Since patients who have undergone total thyroidectomy for malegnancy should not have normally circulating thyroglobulin, their serum thyroglobulin may provide a simple and specific tumour marker for recurrent disease. Of 30 such athyroid patients who were studied, all of the 20 patients who were disease-free ten years after thyroidectomy had minimal (less than15 ng/ml) serum-thyroglobulin levels while all of 10 patients with recurrences had raised levels (greater than 90 ng/ml). Controls ranged from 0 to 60 ng/ml. This assay should prove valuable in following patients who have undergone total thyroidectomy for recurrent thyroid malignancy.

Adolescent↗