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Cobalt radiation induced thyroid cancer & other health issues
Many Baby Boomers received Cobalt radiation in the 1950s. I was 4 years old and received Cobalt to shrink my tonsils. When I was 9 years old, I developed Thyroid Cancer with metastasis to my cervical lymph nodes. Had surgical removal and was cured. In my early 60s I began having odd symptoms that have been related to the decay of the Cobalt radiation that received as a child. Many symptoms that are quality of life impacting still popping up.
Any other boomers with late Cobalt effects? We were radiated for acne, thymus, tonsils, and feet. I am 70 now and am aging very quickly. I am a Physician and can find no data on this late effect but thousands of us were irradiated. There are more victims out there. Thanks.
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HugInterested in more discussions like this? Go to the Thyroid Cancer Support Group.
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Welcome @debdoc101, I moved your message to the Thyroid Cancer group here: https://connect.mayoclinic.org/group/thyroid-cancer/
As well as the Aging Well group: https://connect.mayoclinic.org/group/aging-well/
Fellow members @sueblue @ltecato have talked about radiation-induced late side effects and may have more to add.
Deb, this 1999 paper echoes your experience.
- Thyroid Carcinomas After Irradiation for a First Cancer During Childhood https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamainternalmedicine/fullarticle/1105656
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1 ReactionHello @debdoc101, I would like to add my welcome along with @colleenyoung and others. While you wait for members to share their experience, I thought I would share this 2017 article that discusses radiation induced thyroid cancer in case you haven't seen it.
-- Radiation and Thyroid Cancer:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5454824/
Have you tried searching PubMed to see if you can find a related study? Here's a link that shows the search results for "childhood radiation induced thyroid cancer": https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/?term=childhood+radiation+induced+thyroid+cancer&sort=date&filter=simsearch2.ffrft
Another good search engine for finding the latest medical research is Google Scholar. Here's a link with search results for the same phrase using Google Scholar: https://scholar.google.com/scholar?hl=en&as_sdt=0%2C24&as_ylo=2022&q=childhood+radiation+induced+thyroid+cancer&btnG=
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1 ReactionThank you. I am most interested in the late effects of the Cobalt that was used in the early 1950s on a multitude of children for non-pathological reasons.
Thymus, acne, tonsils, feet for shoe size determination…
Thank you for your reply. Will go to the links you shared.
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1 ReactionI had Cobalt treatments in the 50’s for burn scarring on my upper chest, right below my neck. (Work was done at CHOP and Dr C Everett Koop who became the US General Surgeon) I think that these were in the early stages of using this therapy. I was located by CHOP about 20 years later to be tested for Thyroid Cancer. I was OK. (Don’t know if I ever need to be retested). I ended yo with a Meningioma. Through research I found out that they were happening to people who had Cobalt treatments in the 50’s, usually for head and/neck issues. My scars are about an inch under my neck and I was wondering if the tumor was from that. Apparently it was there for many, many years before it was discovered. I understand that Cobalt treatments were stopped and the only thing that they use Cobalt for is Gamma Knife procedures. (Which I had to remove the tumor or keep it from growing). I’ll have my 6 month checkup in September. (2024).