Interferon-induced thyroid disease

Interferon (IFN) family medicines are widely used to treat viral infections, autoimmune diseases, and cancer, includinglymphoproliferative disorders. They are known to trigger a whole cascade of reactions at the cellular, systemicand body levels. Such a complex and integrated mechanism of IFN action entails a number of unpredictable sideeffects, such as autoimmune thyroid gland (thyroid) disease. Information on the actual incidence and severity of suchconditions in the literature is very limited and inconsistent. Supposedly, thyroid dysfunction can develop both at anystage of IFN therapy and after its completion. To date, there is no universal algorithm for diagnosis and treatmentof this condition, and the question of the need to discontinue interferon therapy for thyroid disease remains open.Insufficient awareness of physicians about the potential risks and mechanisms of development of this conditionleads to delayed diagnosis and improper treatment. Many specialists do not always associate thyroid dysfunctionwith interferon therapy, which in turn leads to inappropriate management. Many specialists do not always considerthyroid dysfunction to be associated with IFN therapy, which in turn can lead to a delay in diagnosis and inappropriatechoice of therapeutic strategy. The review presents literature data on the IFN-induced thyropathy developmentmechanisms, its features, prevalence, clinical signs, as well as the main approaches to diagnosis and treatment.
The aim of our review is to increase physicians’ awareness of interferon-induced thyropathy and to create a basisfor further studies in this area.
Keywords: interferon-induced thyropathy, destructive thyroiditis, cytokines, interferons, thyrotoxicosis, hypothyroidism
Conflicts of interest. The authors have no conflicts of interest to declare.Funding. The article was published under the state assignment “Hormonal, metabolic, molecular and cellularcharacteristics of thyroid diseases as a basis for the development of innovative methods of diagnosis, treatmentand prevention” No. NIOKTR 123021300097-0 with the financial support of the Ministry of Health of the RussianFederation.