Radioactive Iodine

After examining Havok, the doctor said that instead of having to give him thyroid meds his whole life they can put him in the hospital for 5-7 days and give him a radioactive thyroid treatment. I know that they do this for humans but I was surprised they do this for cats. She said it will kill all the cells and cure his nodule instead of taking it out and having to put him on meds. I asked her about how he would be and she said her own cat had it and is now fine. My question is: I still don't understand the process and is Havok going to be very sick over this? After he is home will he be ok after that? Will this hurt his heart? Is this a common practice? What would happen if I didn't do this? By the way she increased the Tapazoile to 1 1/2 at night too. Now I have to add a baby asperin to his diet every three days to prevent a heart clot. Do you doctors recommend this?

[Arnold L Goldman, D.V.M.]

Hi,

I - 131 treatment for feline hyperthyroidism is the safest and best treatment for the disease, and in addition it is curative with just one treatment in as many as 99.5% of cases. A second course can get the last 0.05% if needed. There are no ill effects, the cat is hospitalized solely to protect you and other people from radiation from the cat and its wastes. This is not optional by federal law. If your cat is eligible, do it. There are no down sides, except perhaps cost. Cost of medication and blood monitoring as well as if adverse effects of the medication will match the cost of
I - 131 in a year or so, so that then is no real issue either. If your cat already has hyperthyroid associated heart disease, that too will resolve with I - 131 treatment as the thyroid function returns to normal.

Good luck and you can very likely put your anxieties away on this one.

Arnold L. Goldman DVM, MS
MedHelp & PDOC