ClinicalTrials.gg
Status unknownNCT03377829Updated Mar 19, 2021

A Multicenter Trial of PLA vs. Surgery for Treating PTMC

An interventional study of PLA and Thyroid Surgery in Thyroid Cancer and Treatment Related Cancer, sponsored by WeiWei Zhan. Status unknown at 13 sites in 2 countries. Open to participants aged 18 Years and older. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2021-03-19.

Primary conditionPapillary Thyroid MicrocarcinomaRegistry: Thyroid NeoplasmsReclassifiedWhy we changed it
Registry
Thyroid Neoplasms — the first condition term the registry derived for this study.
ClinicalTrials.gg
Papillary Thyroid Microcarcinoma
Why
  1. The study's title name Papillary Thyroid Microcarcinoma, a narrower term within Thyroid Neoplasms.
Confidence
High: the new condition is named in the study's own title. Of 46 hand-checked studies reclassified this way, 72% were exactly right and 89% in the right disease family; the registry's first term was right for 4% (measured 2026-10-21). How we classify →
Wrong?
Tell us the study's main condition →

Sponsored by WeiWei Zhan · Not applicable, Interventional, and Treatment

The sponsor has not verified this record recently (last verified Mar 2021), so the status shown — last known as Recruiting — may be out of date.
Phase
Not applicable
Study type
Interventional
Enrollment
200
Allocation
Randomized
Ages
18 Years and older
Sex
All
01

Study summary

This is a multicenter prospective controlled trial of percutaneous laser ablation(PLA) versus conventional surgery for the treatment of papillary thyroid microcarcinoma (PTMC).

Read the detailed description

PLA is the acronym for "Percutaneous Laser Ablation". The treatment consists in the destruction (ablation) of Papillary Thyroid Micro Carcinoma by means of optical fibers that deliver high-energy light (laser) into the lesion through skin puncturing (percutaneous). The procedure is performed under ultrasound imaging guidance (ultrasound-guided). The destruction of the lesion occurs through overheating and coagulation. PLA, however, still needs a large-scale validation trial in order to be considered as an effective alternative to both surgery or follow-up for low-risk PTMC in elderly patients and/or in patients with co-morbidities that might expose the patients to a high surgical risk.

After a comprehensive information, patients will be consecutively assigned to Group 1 (surgery, preferentially lobectomy) or to Group 2 (percutaneous laser ablation, performed according to the attached procedure).Peri and post-operative complications, need of drug treatment, length of hospital admission and customer satisfaction will be registered.

The aims of this study are as follows: 1.To establish the rate of cure or partial ablation; 2.To compare the complication rate, time expenditure and costs of two procedures; 3.To assess changes in thyroid function and the need of substitution therapy with two procedures; 4.To assess the tolerability of the procedure, the customer satisfaction and the impact on the quality of life of the patients between conventional surgery and PLA.

02

Conditions studied

  • Thyroid Cancer
  • Treatment Related Cancer

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Keywords

  • Papillary Thyroid Microcarcinoma
  • Percutaneous Laser Ablation
  • thyroidectomy
  • ultrasonography
  • double-blind
03

In context

Papillary Thyroid Microcarcinoma Reclassified

24 studies on the registry are indexed under Papillary Thyroid Microcarcinoma; 8 are open to participants now.

Browse Papillary Thyroid Microcarcinoma studies →

Lead sponsor

This is the only study on the registry with WeiWei Zhan as lead sponsor.

Compared within Papillary Thyroid Microcarcinoma, this study's primary condition as ClinicalTrials.gg classifies it; the registry's first condition term is Thyroid Neoplasms. The counts are of registry records indexed under each term, refreshed daily. How we classify →

04

Who can participate

Ages eligible
18 Years and older
Sexes eligible
All
Accepts healthy volunteers
No

Go through the criteria one by one — yes, no or not sure — and take the list to your doctor or the study team. Kept in this browser only.

Inclusion criteria

  • Newly diagnosed PTMC (maximun diameter> = 5 mm and \< = 10 mm) proved by fine needle aspiration with good thyroid function;
  • Age≥ 18 Y;
  • Single nodule without thyroid capsule contact;
  • There had more than 3mm distance between nodules and trachea, carotid artery, recurrent laryngeal nerve (The distance should up to 5mm after injection of isolation fluid);
  • No coarse calcification or eggshell-like calcification;
  • Imaging examination without local or distant ;
  • Without chemotherapy, radiotherapy and other related therapies;
  • A complete clinical, pathological and follow-up information;
  • Get signed by the patient or family member.

Exclusion criteria

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Multifocal PTMC;
  • Combined with other types of thyroid cancer or hyperthyroidism;
  • Lesion contact with thyroid capsule or located in the isthmus;
  • Serious coagulation dysfunction;
  • Contralateral vocal cord paralysis;
  • Imaging examination with local or distant ;
  • Active Tuberculosis and -positive patients;
  • Patients can not understand or follow research protocol;
  • Pregnant woman.
Terms in these criteria, in plain language(4)

Underlined terms in the criteria open these too. Explained by clinicaltrials.gg, not part of the registry record. The study team decides who can take part.

Biopsy and archival tissue

A biopsy takes a small piece of tissue to examine. “Archival tissue” is a sample already taken, for example at diagnosis, and kept by the hospital.

Whether a stored sample will do depends on when it was taken, how much there is and what the study needs. Ask whether the study accepts your stored sample or needs a new biopsy.

Metastases

Cancer that has spread from where it began to other parts of the body. “Metastatic” cancer is cancer that has spread this way.

Informed consent

Before you join, the study team explains what taking part involves — its purpose, what happens, the risks and possible benefits — and answers your questions, so you can decide freely. Consent is usually recorded on a form (the informed consent form, ICF) signed by you or, where the law allows, by someone legally authorised to decide for you.

You can keep asking questions during the study, you are told of new information that matters, and you can choose to leave at any time.

HIV

The human immunodeficiency virus, which weakens the immune system.

Many studies now accept people whose HIV is controlled on treatment, judged by the viral load and the CD4 count. Check the limits this study sets.

05

Study design

Phase
Not applicable
Primary purpose
Treatment
Allocation
Randomized
Intervention model
Parallel assignment
Masking
Triple (Care provider, Investigator, Outcomes assessor)
Enrollment
200 participants (estimated)

Study arms

  • Experimental
    Percutaneous laser ablation(PLA)

    Eligible participants with PTMC will be randomly assigned to this group and undergo percutaneous laser ablation(PLA). All the process is under the detection of real-time ultrasound.After surgery, all the patients will accept contrast-enhanced ultrasound(CEUS), regular ultrasound follow-up, thyroid functional detection, fine-needle aspiration biopsy(FNAB), neck CT.Per and post-operative complications, need of drug treatment, length of hospital admission and customer satisfaction will be registered.

    Procedure: PLA

  • Active comparator
    Surgery

    Eligible participants with PTMC will be randomly assigned to this group and undergo total/subtotal thyroid surgery.

    Procedure: Thyroid Surgery

Interventions

  • ProcedurePLA

    During the PLA, the patient is in supine position with head extended: the physician, ultrasound assistant and trained nurse work within the sterile field. Under constant ultrasound image guidance and after local anesthesia by means of 2% xylocaine infiltration, thin needles (21G) are positioned in the thyroid lesion, within safety distance from the surrounding anatomical structures. A plane-cut tip fiber optics is inserted into the PTMC through the needle. The laser at 1064 nm wavelength is turned on for 10 minutes until the pre-established energy dose is attained. There is usually no pain or very limited pain.

  • ProcedureThyroid Surgery

    Patients are routinely disinfected and spread the drapes after general anesthesia. Neck skin, fat, placenta muscle are incised successively. The flap is separated to the upper edge of thyroid cartilage, neck white line is incised and anterior muscle group is separated. Then both sides thyroid lobes are exposed. Cut off the isthmus, ligature the thyroid artery, cut off the upper pole. Ligature and cut off the ipsilateral thyroid vein. Reveal and protect the ipsilateral recurrent laryngeal nerve and the parathyroid gland during the entire process. Finally patient is performed total thyroidectomy or subtotal thyroidectomy.

06

What researchers measure

Primary outcomes

  1. Serological examination of thyroid function

    Hyperthyreosis or hypothyroidism.

    Time frame: up to 12 months

Secondary outcomes

  1. Recurrence rate

    The recurrence rate in the thyroid bed or regional lymph-nodes

    Time frame: up to 12 months

  2. Therapeutic Effect

    The rate of cure (defined as the absence of disease persistence at US examination and FNAB) between two methods.

    Time frame: up to 24 months

07

Study locations

13 of 13 sites recruiting
  • Ultrasound Department, Chinese PLA General Hospital
    Beijing, Beijing 010, China
    Recruiting
  • Ultrasound Department of the Third Hospital Affiliated to Zhongshan University
    Guangzhou, Guangdong 020, China
    Recruiting
  • Ultrasound Department, the Second Affiliated Hospital of Harbin Medical Univercity
    Harbin, Heilongjiang 451, China
    Recruiting
    • Shuang-quan Jiang · Contact23237003@qq.com · +8613704800486
    • Guo-qing Du · Contact+8615945164997
  • Ultrasound Department, the Xiangya Third Hospital of Zhongnan University
    Changsha, Hunan 731, China
    Recruiting
  • Ultrasound Department, the First Affliction Hospital of Nanjing Medical University
    Nanjing, Jiangsu 025, China
    Recruiting
  • Ultrasound Department, the First Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University
    Suzhou, Jiangsu 557, China
    Recruiting
  • Ultrasound Department, First people's Hospital Affiliated to Medical School of Shanghai Jiaotong University
    Shanghai, Shanghai 021, China
    Recruiting
  • Ultrasound Department, Ruijin Hospital Affiliated to Medical School of Shanghai Jiaotong University
    Shanghai, Shanghai 021, China
    Recruiting
  • The department of ultrasound ,second affiliated hospital of xi'an jiaotong university
    Xi'an, Shanxi 029, China
    Recruiting
  • Department of Ultrasonography, Zhejiang Cancer Hospital
    Hangzhou, Zhejiang 571, China
    Recruiting
  • Department of Ultrasound Medicine, the First Hospital Affiliated to Medical School of Zhejiang University
    Hangzhou, Zhejiang 571, China
    Recruiting
  • Department of Endocrinology, Regina Apostolorum Hospital
    Rome, Italy
    Recruiting
  • Diagnostic Imaging, Regina Apostolorum Hospital
    Rome, Italy
    Recruiting
08

Updates

Tracking since Sep 25, 2026
No changes since tracking began. The registry record was last updated on Mar 19, 2021, before this site started recording changes on Sep 25, 2026. Its history is on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗
09

Registry details

Key details

Study ID
NCT03377829
Lead sponsor
WeiWei Zhan
Responsible party
WeiWei Zhan (Director, Head of Ultrasound Department; Clinical Professor, Ruijin Hospital) — Sponsor-investigator
First posted
Dec 19, 2017
Start date
Dec 1, 2017
Primary completion
Aug 31, 2021 (estimated)
Completion
Dec 31, 2022 (estimated)
Last update
Mar 19, 2021

Study contacts

Lu Zhang
Contact
aluer2013@163.com
+8615021590551
Wei Zhou
Contact
zw11468@126.com
+8613681642667
WeiWei Zhan, Ph.D
principal investigator · Ruijin Hospital, affiliated to Medical School of Shanghai Jiaotong University

Oversight

Data monitoring committee
No
FDA-regulated drug
No
FDA-regulated device
No
View the source record on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗

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This study is status unknown, as verified in Mar 2021. You cannot join it, but the record below documents what was studied.

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