The ITALIAN THYROID CANCER OBSERVATORY is a nonprofit foundation, which seeks to unite the voices of thyroid cancer patients, the medical professionals engaged in their care, and the scientists conducting high-quality research on these tumors – from their molecular biology and epidemiology to their treatment and long-term management.
The ITCO was inspired by the desire to provide an open forum, where all interested parties can exchange knowledge, experience, and views on questions concerning thyroid nodules and thyroid cancer and by the conviction that such questions can be resolved most effectively through ongoing discussion of the clinical, social, and economic implications of healthcare policy issues.
The convergence of experience and knowledge will be exploited to better define the size of the phenomenon of thyroid cancer (the prevalence of thyroid nodules and the incidence of thyroid carcinomas, which has tripled over the past 10 years, especially in women), to identify its causes, and above all to improve and standardize strategies for the treatment and postoperative follow-up of these tumors, with emphasis not only on the scientific evidence underpinning international practice guidelines but also on the factors that affect diagnosis and care in local settings.
