Open AccessStudy of Serum Leptin in Well‐differentiated Thyroid Carcinoma: Correlation with Patient and Tumor Characteristics
Author(s) -
Rehem Rania Abdel,
Elwafa Waleed Abo,
Elwafa Reham Abo,
AbdelAziz Tarek Ezzat
Publication year - 2014
Publication title -
world journal of surgery
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.115
H-Index - 148
eISSN - 1432-2323
pISSN - 0364-2313
DOI - 10.1007/s00268-014-2634-8
Subject(s) - medicine , leptin , adipokine , thyroid cancer , gastroenterology , thyroid carcinoma , cancer , vascular surgery , body mass index , lymph node , endocrinology , cardiac surgery , thyroid , obesity
Background There is a proven relationship between obesity and several cancers including breast, endometrium, colorectal, and esophagus. With the increasing incidence of both obesity and thyroid cancer, we designed the present study to investigate a causal relationship between leptin, which is one of the well known adipokines, and well‐differentiated thyroid cancer (WDTC). Methods Serum leptin levels were measured in 30 patients with WDTC and compared to 30 healthy control subjects before and 1 month after surgery. Other parameters studied included age, sex, body mass index, menopausal status in women, lymph node status, tumor size, and disease multifocality. Results There were no differences between the two groups regarding age and sex. Preoperative leptin levels were higher in the WDTC patients when compared to the control patients [19.25 (1.50–109.60) vs 0.90 (0.50–11.80) ng/ml, p < 0.001, group 1 vs group 2, respectively]. A significant drop in leptin levels 1 month after surgery occurred in the WDTC group, falling from 19.25 (1.50–109.60) to 0.90 (0.60–8.90) ng/ml ( p < 0.001). This did not occur in the control group ( p = 0.274). Lymph node involvement, tumor size, and multifocality had no effect on leptin levels, although trends were observed ( p = 0.48, 0.079, and 0.064), respectively. Conclusions Serum leptin levels were significantly higher in WDTC patients when compared to control group patients, with a significant drop after surgery. Leptin may play a role in diagnosis of WDTC; however, its prognostic value is still undetermined.