Papillary Cancer

[doddy7]

Morning everyone
Yesterday was told i have Thyroid Cancer. Consultant said it was unusual as i is papillary with follicular offshoots or something like that. I will be having the rest of my thyroid removed o 17th nov and then end of jan Radio Iodine capsule.
How will i feel after surgery? how big is this tablet i will have to take n january?
Please someone talk to me as i am very worried.
Love Dawn

[amela321]

Sorry to see you've joined the club.  Utah has given you some great info.  I'd like to add another website that I think is a great reference.  www.thyca.org  It will give you lots of info about what to expect from your next surgery, from RAI and other resources.  

Take care!

Amy
Papillary thyroid cancer
Near total thyroidectomy and partial central compartment dissection Dec. 1985
RAI Jan. and Oct. 1986
FNA positive for recurrence March 2008
Tumor and partial central compartment dissection April 2008
175mCi RAI August 2008
Tg before RAI was 13

[utahmomma]

Welcome to the very exclusive club of thyroid cancer survivors!  We are the few, the proud, and the strong.

The surgery isn't bad at all and the RAI (I-131 or radio iodine) isn't.  For most of us the roughest part is going really hypo between the surgery and the RAI but it's also manageable.  And the nice thing is that we get to keep most of our hair!  LOL

Everyone above had given you great information.  I wanted to add a web site that I think gives great info too:  http://www.endocrineweb.com/thyroid.html

Just know that there are 4 types of thyroid cancer.  Two that are more easily treated:  papillary and follicular   and two that are very difficult to treat:  medullary and anaplastic.

Papillary and follicular are treated the same way:  thyroid surgery (including lymph nodes if effected) followed by RAI and thyroid replacement meds.

We'll  help you through it.

Welcome

Utahmomma
papillary carcinoma '03, second surgery '04
  recurrence and RAI '06 and '08
three sisters with papillary carcinoma (one with three recurrences/RAI)
other sister with precancer; daughter with precancer

[nissah46]

I was diagnosed two years ago with thyroid cancer, papillary with follicular properties.The surgery was not bad. Usually released after one or two days, but I was in for a week due to calcium issues.  Sometimes the parathyroids(we have 4) are removed or damaged during thyroidectomy.  The parathyroids control calcium, so my levels dropped to a dangerous level.    I had radioactive iodine(RAI) five months after surgery.  My dose was 200mci, and I took it in pill and liquid form.  I was kept in hospital for 2 days, and isolated at home for about one week. You will be on a low iodine diet(LID) for 2 weeks before RAI. Feel free to ask more questions.  Good luck.
Trish

[JittyJat]

Hello, I am 22 and was diagnosed back in August with papillary cancer with a varant meaning its aggressive. I had surgery, and they found taht it attached itself to my trachea....  I then did the big diet, and did the iodine treatment.  I did the body scan 2 weeks ago and i am awaiting results.  I even got pnemonia from the surgery.. all I can say is it is sooo doable!  The treatment is EASY! i went in, and took a pill that is smaller than a tylenol!  waited 20 mins, and went home!! since i dont have kids i could go right home, if u do they will keep u in the hospital for  aday or two since u will be higly radioactive! i didnt get sick, my face got  a bit sore but theres nothing to be scared of! LIke I said, im only 22, and it really wasnt bad at all!  haha the worse part was the diet beforehand :)  You'll be fine!

[Lucy35]

Dawn
I have been through the same as you are going to through this year. I had half my thyroid removed in April only for them to find (i think as i was too shocked to listen properly) bits of papillary and follicular. Those were the words i heard anyway. So they took the other half out in July. The operation in itself is not that bad. After, you feel like you can't lift your head cos of the clips and hence get back ache. So the operation is not that bad. They then give you tablets as you will have no thyroid. Don't know whether you will be going through the same process as me but i had to then wait 6 weeks after surgery then stop taking the tablets for 3 weeks and go on a special low salt/iodine diet. This bit is not nice as there are only certain things you can eat and you get sick of them all and feel really tired as you won't be taking the tablets. Anyway after that I had the capsule which is only the size of a tablet so nothing to worry about whatsoever. Then I had to be in isolation for 5 days which was the hard bit cos I couldn't see my daughter for this time and a week after that as well.
Anyway that is my story and it sounds a bit like yours. You will be fine though. Notice you are in milton keynes, i am up north in lancashire! this is my e-mail address if you want to know anything at all ie what to expect (i check my e-mails more than i come on here!). ***@****.
I know when i went through it i just needed some answers off somebody who had been through the same.

[littles]

That is unfortunate that you have cancer of the thyroid.  But go on line and everywhere you will see that the outlook is very very good.  If you are going to have cancer, this is the one you would want to have.    Easy for me to say, but try not to worry too much.

What were your symptoms and what tests did you undergo?

[ChitChatNine]

Here is a link to RAI.

http://www.medhelp.org/forums/search/73?query=RAI&camp=

The medication replacement can take long to adjust .. that probably is more frustrating than the recuperation process after surgery.

C~

[ChitChatNine]

Good Morning!  I am online early .............I know many of our "local experts" will stop by to help you.  In the meantime please know that the best thing that happened is that you were diagnosed early and early is key detection in thyroid cancer with an extremely high success rate!!!  It is very slow growing.  Papillary is more common than follicular and I believe the follilcular is probably of a bit more concern. They probably will biopsy your lymph nodes too.

When you pick your surgeon be sure he/she has tons of experience with doing TT's.  Especially now that this is Cancer you want to be certain there is skill level there not only for surgery skills, but know-how to remove it all effectively.

I did not have RAI so can offer no first hand esperience.

WELCOME!

C~
partial 1/07
papillary micro's found (2)