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Same-day FNA cytology may relieve patient anxiety
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Anxiety about thyroid nodules can be alleviated with the use of same-day fine-needle aspiration cytology, according to recent study findings.
Gerlof D. Valk, MD, PhD, of the University Medical Center Utrecht in the Netherlands, and colleagues evaluated 131 adults (85.5% women; mean age, 53.3 years) to determine the feasibility of same-day fine-needle aspiration (FNA) cytology diagnosis for thyroid nodules and its effect on patient anxiety during the diagnostic process.
The Bethesda system for reporting thyroid cytopathology was used to categorize the FNA outcomes: nondiagnostic (19.8%), benign (61.8%), atypia of undetermined significance (6.9%), follicular neoplasm (3.1%), suspicious for malignancy (2.3%) and malignant (6.1%).
Thirty-nine patients were evaluated for stress and anxiety levels during the diagnostic process and the week after. Overall, anxiety scores (measured by Cancer Worry Scale [CWS] and State-Trait Anxiety Inventory [STAI]) decreased from the first visit until 1 week after the appointment (P < .001). STAI scores decreased during 1 week in participants with a benign result (P < .001), whereas participants who received an uncertain diagnosis or malignant diagnosis had no decrease in their STAI scores (P = .327). Compared with participants with a CWS score of less than 7, those with scores greater than 7 had a higher STAI score (P < .001).
“We found high levels of distress in patients with a thyroid nodule undergoing same-day FNA [cytology] diagnostics, with levels that were even comparable to patients undergoing same-day diagnostics for breast cancer,” the researchers wrote. “When the results of the FNA [cytology] was benign, anxiety levels decreased rapidly, showing quick relief of anxiety for this patient population. Furthermore, we showed that same-day FNA [cytology] diagnosis is feasible and accurate for the evaluation of thyroid nodules. Therefore, same-day FNA [cytology] diagnosis seems a safe, more patient-friendly approach to diagnose thyroid nodules.” – by Amber Cox
Disclosure: The researchers report no relevant financial disclosures.
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