Thanks for your advice both of you. I'm planning on heading home in a couple of months. Do you think it's too risky to wait that long?
Utah - I love you!!!! :)
You';re the best!
Don't let the "atypical cells" be ignored. My daughter and one of my sisters had "atypical cells" which were determined to be precancerous . . . the other four of us had full-blown cancer.
Here is an article from Thyroid.org that stresses that some forms of thyroid cancer cannot be determined from an FNA (follicular, Hurthle, etc.) but the presence of atypical cells is an indicator of a higher risk for cancer: http://www.thyroid.org/patients/notes/march07/07_03_13.html
Thyroid cancer (if it is that) is very slow growing so you have time to make decisions.
With your family history and the size of your nodule, please follow up with a doctor in Canada when you can.
My best to you.
Utahmomma
papillary carcinoma '03, second surgery '04, recurrence and RAI '06
three sisters with papillary carcinoma (one with three recurrences)
another sister and daughter with precancerous nodules
*****ALL SURVIVING!!!****** :-) :-) :-)
It sounds like you may not know where to get the best treatment for your concerns.
Can a benign tumore turn cancerous? with thyroid cancer in many cases - with an FNA they actually miss cancer because of the smallness of the cell and call it benign at first.
You have a large nodule and it really should be taken care of. The only way to really know if it is cancer - especially with the size of yours is possible a surgery and have a cell slide of the tissue so every part of it is looked at for cancer cells.
I don't know much about treatment there. - but you should find excellent sources in Canada where you are from.
Do you have a doctor there in Canada looking at this already?