Treatment options for thyroid cancer depend on the type and stage of your thyroid cancer, your general health and your preferences. For most cases of thyroid cancer, treatment does not affect life expectancy.
Surgery:
Most people with thyroid cancer have surgery to remove all or most of the thyroid. The procedures used to treat thyroid cancer include:
• Removing all of the thyroid (thyroidectomy): In most cases, the entire thyroid needs to be removed to treat thyroid cancer. An incision is made in the midline of the neck to access your thyroid.
• Removing part of the thyroid (thyroid lobectomy): In some cases where the thyroid cancer is very small, removing only one side (lobe) of your thyroid may be recommended.
• Removing the lymph nodes in the neck: While removing your thyroid, the lymph nodes in your neck (particularly those around the windpipe) may also be removed and tested for the spread of cancer.
Thyroid surgery carries a risk of bleeding and infection. Damage to the parathyroid glands during surgery can lead to low calcium levels in your body. In addition, an injury to the nerves that move the vocal cords can cause hoarseness, a change in the voice or difficulty breathing.
Thyroid hormone therapy:
After a thyroidectomy, you will need to take the thyroid hormone medication levothyroxine for life. This medication has two benefits: it supplies the missing hormone that your thyroid would normally produce, and it suppresses the production of thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) by your pituitary gland. High TSH levels could encourage any remaining cancer cells to grow.
You will probably need to have blood tests every few months to check your thyroid hormone level until the right dose for you is found. After that, the blood tests can be repeated once a year.
Radioactive iodine:
Radioactive iodine treatment is carried out using large amounts of radioactive iodine.
Radioactive iodine treatment is often used after a thyroidectomy to destroy any remaining healthy thyroid tissue, as well as microscopic areas that were not removed during surgery. Radioactive iodine treatment can also be used to treat thyroid cancer that recurs after treatment or spreads to other parts of the body.
Most of the radioactive iodine leaves your body in your urine within the first few days after treatment. You will be given instructions on the precautions you need to take during this period to protect other people from radiation. For example, you may be asked to temporarily avoid close contact with other people, especially children and pregnant women.