radioactive iodine test

[ro43]

I'm starting a low iodine diet this monday in preparation for radioactive iodine uptake test, but I was not told to stop taking my synthroid. why continue taking the medicine? I had complete thyroidectomy and this test is for seeing if it spead elswhere.

[JENNY15]

I had to have my thyroid radiated because I had an 88% uptake!

[nissah46]

I start my LID next Tuesday,and will not be going off my synthroid. Instead I will get 2 injections of thyrogen a few days before my scan. Are you taking Thyrogen? If so, that is why you don't go off your synthroid.

[utahmomma]

I didn't have to have my RAI until 3 years post TT.  I had to be off my Synthroid for 6 weeks.  You don't want any remaining thyroid tissue (or cancer) not absorbing the radiation or, as my nuclear medicine department described it, you want that thyroid tissue/cancer good and hungry for the RAI so you starve it from the hormone.

[redhed87]

Is this your first scan?  I never started meds after my tt and between my RAI and scan.  I started after.  I am going to have my follow up wbs in a month and am going off synthroid and taking cytomel.  I will start LID 2 weeks before my scan.

[Call_me_MN]

Yes, I would definitely call my doctor and check on that. I think the usual thing for the first time doing RAI is to be taken off all medication until your TSH is >30 (for me, that was only three weeks, so I was very lucky - I was expecting it to be at least another week, if not two, which is by far the norm, from what I'm reading). Once your TSH is >30, they can do RAI. If your doctor is planning to use Thyrogen shots to boost your TSH, the protocol is a little different. From what I understand, thyrogen has only recently been approved for first-time RAI use, but maybe your doctor is an early-adopter. I think it's more common to get it for subsequent follow up (as in whole body scans). But I'm new at all this myself, so don't rely on my say so. You may want to check www.thyca.org or their Yahoo group. I've found those very helpful resources.

Are you already scheduled for the RAI? You only need to be on the LID the two weeks prior to your RAI treatment.

[Liz94]

I had to stop taking my medication the day of my surgery and be off of it for 6 weeks prior to the RAI. It seems that different doctors have different protocol. I would think though that you need to be off of it so that your body is depleted of iodine prior to the test. I would call and ask your doc and if he says to keep taking the Synthroid then I'd ask why.