← Return to Occult Papillary Thyroid Cancer with Lateral II Lymph Node Metastasis

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@koh

It sounds like you have been through a lot! I am not sure I understand the situation based on what my understanding is of how thyroid cancer grows.
I was told that the only way to definitely diagnose thyroid cancer was by surgery but since it is a slow growing cancer you can wait to see if something grows….if it doesn’t, then it would be less likely that it is cancer.
I just don’t think a doctor can state that something that has not shown up on any scans so far, will metastasize into another part of your body….this does not make sense to me (however it might be something I never heard of before.) Blood tests, ultra sounds and Ct scans seem to be good ways to monitor, but unless they have something specific, I don’t understand why anyone would consider surgery to remove their thyroid.
A lot of doctors seem to recommend second opinions from people in their practice or friends they work with so it might not be neutral. Surgery will give the doctor the ability to know if you have thyroid cancer, however from what I understand it is usually a self contained cancer that doesn’t spread outside the thyroid. If your tests have shown a “normal thyroid,” I don’t understand why you would need to have surgery.

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Replies to "It sounds like you have been through a lot! I am not sure I understand the..."

Thanks for taking the time to comment. 2022 was quite the year! I really appreciate having someone to talk to about this. While I met a lot of nice ENTs and nurses, the doctors haven't really enjoyed working with me. I think they just wanted me to agree with them. However, God made me someone who questions everything. I'm not one to take "a leap of faith" just because I am told to by a doctor. In the meantime, I have tried looking for research, studies, etc... on my particular situation, and really haven't found anything helpful.

That is one of the reasons I commented here. I am trying to reach out and see if my situation is one that others have been through and can offer me advice on how to proceed. I am a daddy with a wife and 5 beautiful children. I don't want to unnecessarily risk my life over my thyroid. However, I like my thyroid and don't want to give it up unless I see more evidence for such a move.

I'm not sure what your expertise is, but thanks for the encouragement!