Decreased uptake of therapeutic doses of iodine-131 after 185-MBq iodine-131 diagnostic imaging for thyroid remnants in differentiated thyroid carcinoma

We performed a prospective random study to assess possible thyroid stunning by a 185-MBq iodine-131 dose used to diagnose thyroid remnants. Patients with differentiated thyroid carcinoma were included after total or near-total thyroidectomy. They were randomly assigned to two groups. In group 0 (G0, 32 patients), iodine-123 administration only was used to diagnose thyroid remnants and/or metastasis, so that no thyroid stunning by ¹³¹I would occur. In group 1 (G1, 19 patients), diagnostic imaging was performed with ¹²³I and 185 MBq ¹³¹I. ¹²³I imaging was less sensitive than ¹³¹I imaging in identifying thyroid remnants in both groups (94%). Thyroid uptake of ¹²³I was measured in both groups (at 2 h) and was not significantly different between the groups. Patients with thyroid remnants who remained in the study (28/32 in G0, 17/19 in G1) were treated with 370 MBq ¹³¹I, 5 weeks after treatment (mean time, range 12–84 days). In 12/17 G1 patients thyroid uptake measurement was repeated immediately before treatment. Uptake was equal to 1.97%±0.71% and significantly lower (P<0.05) than the previous measurement (3.76%±1.50%). Patients were imaged 7 days after administration of the therapeutic dose and the images were compared with the diagnostic images. In 28/28 G0 patients thyroid remnants were unchanged and clearly seen. In 5/17 G1 patients, however, the remnants were hardly identified, although they had been clearly seen at the time of diagnosis. We conclude the following: (1) a diagnostic dose of 185 MBq ¹³¹I decreases thyroid uptake for several weeks after administration and can impair immediate subsequent ¹³¹I therapy; (2) ¹²³I is slightly less sensitive than ¹³¹I in identifying thyroid remnants; and (3) the need to scan for thyroid remnants remains to be confirmed, since only 2/51 patients enrolled in this study were not treated with ¹³¹I. Received 6 August and in revised form 24 October 1997