Thyroid cancer is cancer that starts in cells in yourthyroid gland.
Most thyroid cancers can be cured if caught before they spread to other body parts.
This article describes thyroid cancer symptoms, causes, diagnosis, spread, and treatment.
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It also discusses life after thyroid cancer and disease outlook.
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Thyroid Cancer Symptoms
Early-stage thyroid cancer often occurs without symptoms.
It is usually discovered by chance during a routine exam or an imaging test for unrelated reasons.
Papillary thyroid cancer can grow over several years before it causes recognizable symptoms.
It’s possible, though uncommon, to show early signs of thyroid cancer.
The most common sign of thyroid cancer is a newlump or enlargementin your neck.
It rarely causes symptoms and is often discovered by chance.
Types of Thyroid Cancer
Several types of thyroid cancerexist.
Some are more aggressive than others.
Thyroid cancer shows up when the DNA that controls the natural cell growth cycle becomes damaged.
The damaged thyroid cells grow out of control and live longer than they should.
As they increase in number, the damaged cells gather and form tumors in your thyroid.
As the number of damaged cells grows, thyroid cancer spreads (metastasizes) to other organs.
The exact cause of most thyroid cancers is not known.
However, there is evidence that external radiation may cause damage that triggers abnormal cell growth.
It is common to receive a diagnosis of thyroid cancer before you notice symptoms.
If you find a lump, consult your healthcare provider.
However, FNA is not always needed for diagnosis.
Thyroid cancer can spread through yourlymph systemor your blood.
The details used to determine your treatment plan.
The time it takes your thyroid cancer to spread depends on the key in of thyroid cancer.
Differentiated thyroid cancers spread slowly over months or years.
Other types of thyroid cancer are usually more aggressive and can spread in a matter of weeks.
Thyroid Cancer vs. Thyroid Disease
Changes in the production of your thyroid hormone can have different effects.
Thyroid cancer is a growth in your thyroid gland.
Certain types of thyroid cancer can spread to other parts of your body and cause serious side effects.
Thyroid diseaseinvolves a change to your thyroid cells without cancer.
These conditions do not spread to other parts of your body.
They are not life-threatening.
Targeted therapy:Targeted therapy uses drugs that identify and attack certain cells that support tumor growth.
Thyroid hormone therapy:Thyroid hormone therapy blocks or removes thyroid hormones to stop cancer cells from growing.
Chemotherapy:Chemotherapy uses drugs to slow or kill cancer cells.
These drugs may be administered orally or by injection.
For most people, treatment provides a cure.
For others, thyroid cancer may never go away completely.
In either situation, it is normal to worry about recurrence and your future.
Many thyroid cancer survivors also benefit from the emotional support available via online or local cancersupport groups.
Hypothyroidism is treated with a prescription oral thyroid hormone preparation.
The first-line treatment is Synthroid (levothyroxine), a synthetic version of the hormone thyroxine (T4).
Outlook for Thyroid Cancer
The outlook for thyroid cancer is generally positive for most people.
However, everyone has a unique experience with thyroid cancer.
Your healthcare provider formulates a prognosis based on your disease characteristics to determine your recovery or survival.
Your outlook is calculated on the experiences of large groups of people over many years, not individual cases.
Despite your prognosis, your experience may differ due to your unique characteristics.
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Moffitt Cancer Center:How to cope with side effects of thyroid cancer treatment.
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