# 2021 American Thyroid Association guidelines for management of patients with anaplastic thyroid cancer

Source: https://onco.cc/key-papers/paper-ata-anaplastic-thyroid-guideline-bible-thyroid-2021/  
OnCo record `paper-ata-anaplastic-thyroid-guideline-bible-thyroid-2021` (Key paper). Data CC BY-NC 4.0, attribute "Data from OnCo (onco.cc)"; commercial use needs a licence.

## TL;DR

The updated American guideline for anaplastic thyroid cancer stresses molecular testing within days of diagnosis, BRAF-MEK inhibitors for BRAF-mutant disease including before surgery, multimodal therapy for resectable disease, and early goals-of-care discussions.

## Summary

Evidence-based guideline covering rapid diagnosis and staging, airway management, molecular testing, surgery, radiotherapy with or without chemotherapy, BRAF-directed and other targeted therapy, immunotherapy, and palliative and supportive care for anaplastic thyroid cancer.

## Fields

- Kind: Key paper
- Last checked: 2026-09-17
- Journal: Thyroid
- Year: 2021
- DOI: 10.1089/thy.2020.0944
- Authors: Bible KC, Kebebew E, Brierley J, et al.
- What it means: The anaplastic thyroid cancer page's emphasis on speed, BRAF testing and neoadjuvant targeted therapy follows this guideline.
- Caveats: Evidence for most recommendations is from small series.

## Sources

- Thyroid 2021: https://doi.org/10.1089/thy.2020.0944
- PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33728999/

## Connected records

- cancers: [Anaplastic thyroid cancer](https://onco.cc/cancers/anaplastic-thyroid-cancer/)

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