Thyroid Cancer

[mrsbarnes15]

Hello. Im 24 years old. I just had my thyroid and lymph nodes taken out on Monday because I had thyroid cancer. I had a cystic mass on the right side of my neck. Ever since ive had this surgery, the docs say my calcium levels are low. I was released from the hospital 2 days after the surgery, but I just got admitted again because I got really sick. I got really numb and tingly all over my body. The docors are saying its because of low calcium. They give me calcium through an iv and tums. But, before the surgery or before I even found out I had this thyroid cancer, I had similiar symptoms. I would get all numb and tingly and my hands would cramp up. Could this all be related?

[Mark Lupo, M.D.]

It is not uncommon to see a low calcium levels after surgery, usually this is temporary.  Please work with the physicians to make sure that you are on appropriate calcium and possibly prescription vitamin D if needed.  It is not uncommon to have somebody symptoms before surgery but they are certainly more pronounced usually after surgery.  It is important time to work closely with your physicians to balance the calcium as low calcium can be potentially dangerous.  Usually the parathyroid glands are "stunned" and then come back to work within several weeks.

[mrsbarnes15]

Thank you for your fast response. Back in July, I had something really wierd happen to me. It was a normal day and I was driving. All of sudden my body got all numb and tingly, and my hands cramped up to my chest. My husband called an ambulance and long story short they said it was a panick attack. (hyperventalation) It happened a couple more times after that. I have not felt right since then. It almost seems like my anxiety is always high. A couple months later, I noticed a lump on the right of my neck. After testing it, they said I had pap thyroid cancer. They would have to do a thyroidectomy and a neck dissection. I had the surgery on monday, and my calcium levels did drop. I got sick, and all numb and tingly and I cramped up again like I did before. So Im wondering if this could all be related. Maybe there was something wrong with the parathyroid glands before the surgery?