Dosage for Cancer Suppression

[treimbol]

Hi all, I realize everyone is completely different in how they respond thyroid medication, but to all the thyroid cancer patients out there, can you tell me what dosage of what worked for you for maximum cancer suppression without making you feel like total ****?  Thanks guys!

[kazzer838]

Hi, yes you can get the thyrogen injections which means you will not need to come off your meds for scans etc.

[tammi1986]

I found this forum when looking for something else about thyroid med's but seen as though its been a while since posts, im thinking that maybe you guys ave had some success that i could learn from!
I'm 23, TT a year ago after a fairly big thyroid tumor (pappillary carcanoma) excuse spelling! and have changed med's SO many times lately. I am now on 125mcg of thyroxine but am having trouble getting the tablets to make up that dose so ive started takng 100mcg one day and 150 the next...is that a good idea or not such  good plan???
Also, as i get really sick when i go off the thyroxine for the RAI scans, does anyone know of an alternative to ging off med's or an alternative to the RAI scans?
Even one day of missing med's leaves me sick for 2-3 days and last time i was taken off the med's, they had to change the dates of the scans because my body wasnt coping...went really puffy, very low BP, heart prob's, nausea, headaches, NO memory, half my hair fell out so I'm trying to avoid that this time. Im in Australia so it might be different but i would be grateful for suggestions that i could look into.
Im only 23 and a year after the cancer was diagnosed am only just off the anti-nausea meds and im worried about the impact of changing does and going off meds for the scans (the scans which should b this month but without finding a solution yet, i havent booked!)
appreciate anyone's help, thanks heaps! Tammi

[treimbol]

Thank you all!  This is so helpful.  I know I should trust my endo, but I am not so trusting of most doctors these days---my doctor actually taught at Harvard Med and has been an endo for 28 years, but still, I kinda want to have some control over this and be educated and not be just some patient and have my dosing based on my weight alone.  I am doing good on 37.5mcg of Cytomel right now which I guess is the equivalent of 150mcg of Synthroid so maybe we will start there...I do have to keep my TSH down low because my tumor was 1.5cm...not sure about lymph node involvement yet.

[ChitChatNine]

I started with 25mcgs and worked my way up to 100mcgs and then it went down to the current 75mcgs.  I am overly sensitive to most meds  .. in the beginning we went very slowly .. I had nausea the first week 1/2 hr after taking the meds and with ea increase in med dosing; but it went away after the first week.

The side effect I still have is having to spread out other meds by hours and I mean hours from taking the synthroid or I get anxiety .... cold meds and anti inflammatory prescription meds for my ankle.  Sometimes I take my Sudafed for sinus bad headache first and then followup later in the day with Synthroid.

C~

[pep88]

I have been all over the board with meds...  I am currently at 200 Levoxyl (which is btw the largest dose, both on Synthroid and Levoxyl, I've been on thus far) and starting to feel a little better (Synthroid sucked for me).  I'm a titch on the hyper side right now, but the labs were run b4 the switch to Levoxyl.  I'm waiting to take the half dose on Sundays as directed by my endo's nurse, because I want to see if the Levoxyl and Syntrhoid are comparable dosage wise for me.  

I read both online and here at the forum, that the dosage you're on has a ton to do with your weight.  And I do think that endos in general use that as a guideline.  But my girlfriend (who is about 5'7", and about 110lbs, and a model...AND still has her thyroid...) takes 200 Levoxyl as well.   I'm 5'8", but I'm NOT 110lbs!  (I do have dreams about it though...LOL!)  

It's not just all about weight, it's the individual and how their body operates.  There are no real rules to the thyroid meds that I've found.  That's why we all bi*ch about our endos and their lack of knowledge on the topic.  I'm not sure it would be an easy profession given what I've come to know... Not that I'm justifying anyone's incompetence or anything...

[ChitChatNine]

ut oh .. am I the only one whose been at this for over 1.5yrs and still moving dosing around?  My cancer was incidental finding .. two small tumors .. no lymph node involvement .. fully encapsulated.  All those things mean something as well as your diagnosis and treatment plan!   Some want as close to .1 as possible I believe and others, like me are ok under 1.0

I am great at 75mcgs Synthroid TSH 1.8
Anxiety creeps in at 88mcsg Synthroid TSH 1.3
Anxiety and word retrieval issues, brain fog, insomnia, sweats @ 100mcgs TSH 0.667

So for me it is TSH 1.8 on 75mcgs of Synthroid and ultrasounds ev. 6 mos. for followup checks.

Cheryl

[shannon828]

I was started on .125 and have yet to have my follow-up bloodwork (scheduled for July), but I was originally started on 25 of Cytomel and was switched two weeks before my RAI treatment.  My bloodwork the week before my RAI showed a "nicely suppressed" TSH level per my Endo (I have the exact number at home, and I'm at work) so that dose seems to be pretty close to where I need to be.  In terms of how I feel, I feel pretty much the same as I did with a thyroid.

[Liz94]

I was started on 100mcg of Levoxyl and was then changed to 150 mcg of Synthroid. My tsh is now at .2 and I feel pretty good.

[KelDC]

I was started on 150 mcg of Synthroid. Then it was upped to 175 after my bloodwork showed a TSH of 1.6 after 5 weeks on the Synthroid.  I had more bloodwork today, and I have a feeling my visit to my endo next week is going to result in an increase to 200 mcg.  I have felt good on both dosages so far, though my husband says I'm better on the 175... not as moody, more energy, etc.   What does he know?  ;)  

They like to keep TSH levels below 1, from what I understand, but, as you noted, the dosages of medication vary from patient to patient.  

[helsurf]

my doc started me out on 125mcg of levothyroxine although my cancer was not confirmed straight away, i'm thinking now they had a pretty good idea and thats why i was started on such a high dose :)

Love Helen x x x

[dscoochie]

I was started on 0.100mg (or 100mcg) of synthoid. I was told this is s good starting dose for my weight.  ???

I was also told that I will be monitored every six weeks and the synthroid will be adjusted at that time.

As cancer patients, we must keep our TSH low (very very low) for suppression of any regrowth of thyroid tissue.