Abstract: Objective To explore the diagnostic value of serum galectin-3 and stromal cell-derived factor-1 (SDF-1) combined with ultrasound elastography (UE) for papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC).Methods Ninety PTC patients admitted to our hospital from January 2023 to May 2024 were used as the observation subjects (PTC group).Another 95 patients with benign thyroid tumors during the same period in our hospital were regarded as the control group.ELISA was applied to detect the expression levels of galectin-3 and SDF-1 in the serum of subjects.All patients underwent UE examination and general information was collected.Four grid table method was applied to analyze the diagnostic value of serum galectin-3,SDF-1,and UE for PTC.The diagnostic value of serum galectin-3, SDF-1 and UE for PTC was analyzed by the four-grid table method.The consistency Kappa test was applied to compare the consistency between serum galectin-3,SDF-1,and UE alone and in combination in diagnosing PTC and pathological results.ROC curve was used to analyze the diagnostic value of serum galectin-3,SDF-1,UE alone and in combination for PTC.Results There was no statistically obvious difference in lesion diameter,age,BMI,and gender between the control group and the PTC group (P>0.05).Compared with the control group [(2.03±0.34) ng/ml,(10.66±1.40) pg/ml],the serum levels of galectin-3 [(2.41±0.41) ng/ml] and SDF-1 [(12.42±2.02) pg/ml] in the PTC group increased (P<0.05).The AUC of serum galectin-3 for diagnosing PTC was 0.732,with a sensitivity of 83.33% and a specificity of 62.11%.The AUC of serum SDF-1 for diagnosing PTC was 0.775,with a sensitivity of 63.33% and a specificity of 86.32%.The UE diagnosis results showed 31 false positives and 18 false negatives,with moderate consistency compared to the pathological diagnosis results,the Kappa value was 0.472 (P<0.05),the diagnostic AUC was 0.737,the specificity was 67.37%,and the sensitivity was 80.00%.The results of combined diagnosis of serum galectin-3 and SDF-1 with UE showed 4 false positives and 9 false negatives,with high consistency compared to pathological diagnosis,the Kappa value was 0.859 (P<0.05),the diagnostic AUC was 0.929,the specificity was 95.79%,and the sensitivity was 90.00%.The combined diagnosis of serum galectin-3,SDF-1,and UE for PTC showed higher specificity and accuracy,and lower misdiagnosis rate than the single indicator diagnosis (P<0.05).Conclusion Serum galectin-3 and SDF-1 levels are elevated in patients with PTC,and serum galectin-3,SDF-1,and UE have certain diagnostic value for PTC.The combined diagnosis of the three has higher value.

Key words: papillary thyroid carcinoma; galactin-3; stromal cell derived factor-1; ultrasound elastography; diagnostic value