© 2021 American yroid Association. All rights reserved.
6
MANAGEMENT OF ATC
Overview and Informed Consent
• Anaplastic thyroid cancer is difficult to treat because it can
grow and spread rapidly in the neck and to other parts of the
body.
• Because ATC grows and spreads quickly, it is urgent that you
come up with a treatment plan as soon as possible. e sooner
a treatment plan is started, the better the outcome.
• Informed consent is an important part of the treatment
process. It is critical that you understand, appreciate,
rationalize and express your decisions with your healthcare
team, as well as your family and loved ones.
• When making decisions about treatment you should weigh up
your own priorities and decide what treatment feels right for
you based on multiple factors including:
› What treatment options are available to you to consider?
› How much benefit is expected from the treatment? e.g.,
cure or slowing spread
› What is the potential for side effects? How common and
how severe?
› How is your health otherwise? Do you have any health
condition which will affect how you respond or react to the
treatment?
• You need to decide if an aggressive treatment plan to try to
cure or slow disease progression is right for you.
• Every patient and scenario is different, and there is no right or
wrong answer – only what is right for you.
