Age as a Risk Stratification Factor in Surgically Treated Low-Risk Indeterminate Thyroid Nodules: Insight From the TIRETA Study
Authors' conclusion
In TIR3a/Bethesda III nodules, age functions as a clinically meaningful risk modifier rather than a stand-alone diagnostic tool. Although insufficient to guide surgery independently, age may help contextualize malignancy probability and support shared decision-making, particularly when molecular testing is unavailable or inconclusive.
Study context
- Population
- Consecutive adults with TIR3A/Bethesda III cytology who underwent thyroid surgery 2015–2025 with definitive histology; mean age 54 ± 14 years, 23.7% male
- Participants
- 435 adults
- Exposure
- Age as predictor of malignancy
- Outcome
- Malignancy at final histology
Methodological detailssingle tertiary centre, consecutive patients
- Single tertiary centre
- Consecutive patients
Main finding
As reported in the abstract
Differentiated thyroid cancer
76
17.5%
Increasing age independently associated with lower malignancy risk: aOR per year
0.98
95% CI 0.96–0.99P = .015
Discriminative performance of age: AUC
0.608
95% CI 0.536–0.681
Model-based absolute shift in malignancy probability between 40 and 60 years attributable to age alone
≈8-10 percentage points
Observational data: associations, not effects.
Original publication
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