Patients’ experiences of diagnosis and management of papillary thyroid microcarcinoma: a qualitative study

BMC Cancer

Table 1 Participant characteristics

Characteristic	No. of patients (n = 25)
Age (years)
≤25 26–50 51–75 75+	1 5 18 1
Gender
Female Male	17 8
Highest level of education
Year 11 or below High school Technical or college diploma Bachelors degree or above	2 2 8 13
Recruitment Avenue
Queensland Thyroid Cancer Study (QTCS) Chris O’Brien Lifehouse patient rooms Royal North Shore Hospital endocrine surgical database	18 2 5
Size of nodule (mm)^a
0.0–1.9 2.0–3.9 4.0–5.9 6.0–7.9 8.0- ≤ 10.0	3 3 6 6 5
Mode of detection^b
Physical exam finding Imaging finding Diagnostic work-up for thyroid abnormality Case finding Symptomatic nodule	3 14 3 1 4

^aPatient reported, two patients were unsure of the exact size of their nodules. All nodules were ≤10 mm
^bHow the patient came to be diagnosed with PMC from information discussed during the interview based on Singh Ospina’s definition of mechanism detection [15]

ISSN: 1471-2407