Any guys here that have had hemi or total tyhroidectomey?

[1547]

Hi there.  Just wondering if there are any guys here that have undergone a hemi or total thyroidectomy.  Just wondering how things went, and how long you were off work, and how you feel now.

I am 40 years old with 4cm inconclusive results' nodule and am having a hemi in two weeks.  I have read and heard many times that being over 40, being male, and having a nodule 4 cm or larger increase the risk factor.  Does anyone have any specific links that would support this, as I have yet not been able to find hard evidence of this even though it is commonly accepted wisdom.

I have attempted to read the threads and find other guys who have posted regarding their experiences, but have had no luck.

Thanks to all.

[angel_sg]

Hi,

How was your surgery? Did they only took 1 part of your thyroid or the whole thyroid?

Hi Roman,

How r u doing now? I just had my TT last oct 14, 2011 and my rai will be on feb next yr.. no  available slot thats why it was delayed.. I'm on thyroxine now for 4 days and I still dont have the streght I used to have before.. Will I able to regain back this? just a bit scary...

angelito

[Lightsmsb]

Hello, I am 38 y/o male and I had a papillary cancer of the thyroid and had my surgery on Jan 11.  When the surgeon took out the left side and waited for a frozen section and came back positive he took out the right side too.  The final path report confirmed the cancer and we(surgeon and I) found out I also had it on the right side too (I only knew of the left side only at the time).  Mine were 0.8cm left and 0.2cm right.  I had my RAI (very low dose; 30 mci) on March 5th and body scan on 19 Mar.  Scan came back clean for me.  

As Roman said my surgeon ran over my vocal cords and still have a problem projecting my voice especially in crowded places.  Other than that my health is been great.  I was lucky not to get the depression and the big tired spells as most on here but my surgeon and endo told me males do better with these surgeries and other thyroid issues then women.  Even when my TSH shot up to almost 120, I was not having the typical hypo problems as most do.  Its all case by case.  
I hope the best for you and keep us updated on your case.  
Cheers,
Scott

[malawi]

Also wanted to add that my surgeon walked all over my vocal cords but my voice was as strong as ever...just couldnt hit those bee gee high notes for a couple of months..ha ha ha
Roman

[1547]

Thanks Roman.  It is always good to hear the good reports.  As this problem usually does not affect guys, I just wanted to hear from one is all.  Certainly no offence to the fine ladies here who have suffered from similar problems.

I have put off surgery until after Easter as I am taking my wife and girls on a trip of a lifetime (for us) to watch the Phoenix Suns, and our Canadian hero Steve Nash, play a couple of games of basketball.  When the coach found out we were coming, he invited us to a closed practise so that is thrilling for my kids.

Although the odds are in my favor for this 4 cm nodule and the hemi, one has to prepare for all eventualities.

I am trusting that they will hack away the right lobe, leave the parathyroids intact, and my voice will be fine.  My MD, who I trust implicitly and have a great relationship with, told me that if it was he, the surgeon I am using and the symptoms I have would have him have the surgery.  

Thanks.

[malawi]

Hope you enjoy the easter break.My surgeon said i could wait a month or so and it would make no difference but i decided to knock it out before christmas..more than likely it will be a benign growth..either way you will be fine..Go suns! i am a phoenix fan myself..hope they can get by dallas this year...best of luck to you and feel free to ask any questions you might have..there are a couple of guys on here besides myself
Roman

[malawi]

Also a good website i learned from was endocrineweb.com...also the book thyroid for dummies was very helpful...just an interesting side note is that Rod Stewart,Joe piscopoe,Roger ebert and Dan Snyder(owner of redskins) as well as a couple of former and current MLB players are all thyroid cancer survivors!!
Roman

[malawi]

cont..
9 days later i went to get my stitches out and i got my final pathology report and found out that it was cancerous.I then went on my LID diet and had RAI treatment(2 night hospital stay)on dec 27th.My dosage was 150 millicuries.Other than some very mild nausea and a little irritating of my salivary glands the hype was much worse than the actual swallowing of the pill.
My next step was my full body scan on jan 8th to see if the cancer had gone anywhere else in the body.Follicular tends to go to lung or bones if(it happens but not very common)if it goes anywhere.Fortunately i came back all clear!
Since then ive had 2 subsequent blood tests to determine tsh level(im currently on 137 mcg of levothyroxine...i just had another 6 week blood test today to see if they have to up the dosage(must be under .1 to suppress any new cell regrowth)I missed a total of 4 weeks of work(one was a vacation week) and i must say 4 months later im healing very nicely and feel great.Im an avid weight lifter and runner.I dont feel any different(except having more energy)then i did before the whole thing started...Im not really a stats guy but the good news is the long term survival and cure rates are pretty darn good even for us males!..feel free to ask away.great support here..Roman

[malawi]

Hi
I am a 44 year old male(43 when diagnosed).I had a TT on dec 12th for an undetermined follicular neoplasm(2.8cm).All my doctors(surgeon,endo,gp,etc)told me that if you are a male over 40 and its a cold nodule getting a TT is pretty much sop.The chances of it being cancerous were 50 50 according to the opinion of my surgeon(highly respected chief surgeon down here in central fl).Turns out is was follicular cancer(stage one and non invasive).also had a small bit of pappillary in right lobe so getting a TT was definitely the way to go.The surgery went well and fthe surgeon told me that it did not look cancerous to him but if it was it was minimally invasive.He removed a couple of nearest lymph nodes which came back negative.I was in the hospital for 2 and a half days because of a drop in calcium due to one of my parathyroid glands(small rice size glands attached to thyroid gland)being removed.We have a total of 4 and you only need a quarter of one to produce calcium.Any way i was given some calcium d supplements until my levels came back up(couple of weeks).
Surgery only took about 2 hours and my throat was pretty sore the first day but i did not need to use any pain medication.