Material available
The study cohort includes all those who were resident
in the areas of Ukraine and Russia contaminated by radioactive
fallout from the accident and who were aged under 19 at exposure
(i.e. born after 26th April 1967). Thyroid cancer in those
who were children or adolescents at exposure is the only cancer
to have shown a substantial increase in these areas and it
is clearly related to exposure to radioiodine (predominantly
the short lived isotopes – particularly 131-I, which
has a half life of 8.1 days). This is evidenced by the sharp
decrease in the frequency of thyroid cancer (returning to
pre-accident levels) in those who were born after 1/1/87 and
were therefore not exposed to radioiodine either in utero
(the thyroid concentrates iodine from 3 months of intrauterine
age) or in childhood. The cohort now includes a significant
number of cases of thyroid tumours from patients who are resident
in the areas contaminated by fallout from Chernobyl, but by
virtue of the fact that they were born after 1/1/87 have not
been exposed to radioiodine. This is an extremely valuable
cohort that serves as a control population for thyroid cancer
associated with radioiodine exposure.
The CTB collects a variety of different types of biospecimen
from patients undergoing operations for thyroid cancer or
adenoma in the Institute of Enodcrinology and Metabolism in
Kiev, Ukraine and the Medical Radiological Research Centre
in Obninsk, Russia who consent to donate to the project. Tissue
is collected to an approved standard operating procedure (SOP)
and is snap frozen, and the presence or absence of tumour
is verified by frozen section. A representative paraffin block
is also obtained for each case. Where appropriate, we also
collect fresh and paraffin tissue from loco-regional metastases.
Currently we do not issue tissue but provide extracted nucleic
acid, paraffin sections and sections from tissue microarrays
from this material.
The CTB provides materials and data for international research
groups. Briefly, the process involves a formal application,
followed by review by an external panel. Approval for access
is based on the reports from the review panel and, if necessary,
review by the Chairman of the Scientific Advisory Board.
For more information on you can obtain approval click
here.
Cases which have been reviewed, broken down by tumour type
(more detailed information can be provided on request from
the CTB Secretariat); the number of cases for which frozen
material is available is given in brackets.
| |
Ukraine |
Russia |
Total |
| Papillary Carcinoma |
990 |
(792) |
531 |
(424) |
1521 |
(1216) |
| Follicular Carcinoma |
68 |
(58) |
22 |
(19) |
90 |
(77) |
| Medullary Carcinoma |
26 |
(21) |
21 |
(14) |
47 |
(35) |
| Other cancers |
38 |
(33) |
25 |
(18) |
63 |
(51) |
| Follicular Adenoma |
305 |
(236) |
215 |
(184) |
520 |
(420) |
| Other Benign Follicular Tumours |
61 |
(51) |
60 |
(44) |
121 |
(95) |
| Miscellaneous Tumours |
53 |
(33) |
78 |
(70) |
131 |
(103) |
| Total |
1541 |
(1224) |
952 |
(773) |
2493 |
(1997) |
Table updated 05.05.2009
The total number of cases included in the CTB is
2493. Of these 75% are resident in the contaminated oblasts
and 88% of these were born before 01/12/1986 and therefore
exposed to radioiodine at 3 months of intrauterine age or
older. A total of 14% were born after 01/12/1986 and therefore
not exposed to radioiodine in fallout.
More information:
Aliquots of nucleic acid
Paraffin sections
Tissue Micro Arrays
|
