hemi-thyroidectomy ?

[Guest guest]

Sofía

I just had a partial thyroidectomy on July 1 and was sent home with a

benign diagnosis. Then a small amount of cancer

was found and now I too will need to get another operation and RAI

treatment. My doctor had me put on150 levoxyl right

away and I was to have a blood test sent to him on the 5th of August , a

little over a month after the operation. Now I have

another meeting and more tests . I am sure your doctor just thinks a

partial is better because it leaves you with a functioning

thyroid and you may not even need a hormone pill. I want my other side

to stay so much but fear it is just about to come out.

Ellyn

> Has anyone just had a partial or hemi-thyroidectomy??

>

> I have a 2.2 cm nodule and the FNA dx me with

> papillary carcinoma, my endo said they would most

> likely just remove the 1/2 of my thyroid with the

> nodule, take samples from the other half and possibly

> remove the rest of my thyroid a couple of days later.

> I was wondering what the odds were of having a second

> surgery so soon? It doesn't seem like a good idea to

> me to have two surgeries back to back, esp since I

> just had knee surgery a few weeks ago!

> From what I have read it seems as if a TT is the most

> common procedure for papillary carcinoma. I don't

> meet with my surgeon until Friday to ask him, so any

> thoughts on this are appreciated.

>

> Sofía

> soshrew@...

>

> _________________________________________________________

>

[Guest guest]

Has anyone just had a partial or hemi-thyroidectomy??

I have a 2.2 cm nodule and the FNA dx me with

papillary carcinoma, my endo said they would most

likely just remove the 1/2 of my thyroid with the

nodule, take samples from the other half and possibly

remove the rest of my thyroid a couple of days later.

I was wondering what the odds were of having a second

surgery so soon? It doesn't seem like a good idea to

me to have two surgeries back to back, esp since I

just had knee surgery a few weeks ago!

From what I have read it seems as if a TT is the most

common procedure for papillary carcinoma. I don't

meet with my surgeon until Friday to ask him, so any

thoughts on this are appreciated.

Sofía

soshrew@...

_________________________________________________________

[Guest guest]

Sofia,

If you already know is cancer, have it all out. That is the general consensus.

A lot of us have had partial thyroidectomies (myself being one of them) because,

going into the surgery, we did not know if it was cancer or not. Once the

cancer was found, I had to a have second surgery 2 weeks later--not fun. Also,

I think if your nodule is over 1 cm, *they* definitely do not limit it to a

partial thyroidectomy. While a 2.5 cm nodule is not large, it also not

considered to be small.

in VA.

In a message dated Mon, 12 Aug 2002 9:52:32 AM Eastern Standard Time, Sofía

Galarza Liu writes:

>Has anyone just had a partial or hemi-thyroidectomy??

>

>I have a 2.2 cm nodule and the FNA dx me with

>papillary carcinoma, my endo said they would most

>likely just remove the 1/2 of my thyroid with the

>nodule, take samples from the other half and possibly

>remove the rest of my thyroid a couple of days later.

>I was wondering what the odds were of having a second

>surgery so soon? It doesn't seem like a good idea to

>me to have two surgeries back to back, esp since I

>just had knee surgery a few weeks ago!

>From what I have read it seems as if a TT is the most

>common procedure for papillary carcinoma.  I don't

>meet with my surgeon until Friday to ask him, so any

>thoughts on this are appreciated.

>

>Sofía

>soshrew@...

>

>_________________________________________________________

>

[Guest guest]

Many of us have had an inconclusive FNAs that necessitated having a PT

to make a diagnosis. A frozen section is done while the patient is in

surgery and since a 'hurry up' method of slide preparation is done it

is not as accurate. A final diagnosis of a malignancy is often the

outcome several days later, so another surgery is required within a

few days or weeks (mine was 3 weeks later). Having 2 surgeries is not

at all uncommon.

Since your FNA was conclusive for papillary thyca, it would seem that

they would opt to do a TT at this point.

Marilyn

(TT 1994, papillary with a follicular variant and lung metastases.

Positive scans in 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998. 435mCi's RAI. Scans

negative in 1999, 2000, 2002 -- the last one using Thyrogen).

> Has anyone just had a partial or hemi-thyroidectomy??

>

> I have a 2.2 cm nodule and the FNA dx me with

> papillary carcinoma, my endo said they would most

> likely just remove the 1/2 of my thyroid with the

> nodule, take samples from the other half and possibly

> remove the rest of my thyroid a couple of days later.

> I was wondering what the odds were of having a second

> surgery so soon? It doesn't seem like a good idea to

> me to have two surgeries back to back, esp since I

> just had knee surgery a few weeks ago!

> From what I have read it seems as if a TT is the most

> common procedure for papillary carcinoma. I don't

> meet with my surgeon until Friday to ask him, so any

> thoughts on this are appreciated.

>

> Sofía

> soshrew@y...

>

> _________________________________________________________

>

[Guest guest]

Sofia,

Hello! I cannot relate to the partial. It played out in surgery exactly as my

surgeon described it to me, beforehand. He told me that he would remove the

right side, where the tumor was, and that they would do a frozen section from

pathology right then and there. If that came back as definite papillary

carcinoma, then he would proceed to remove the left side, also.

He did do the frozen section while I was in surgery, well, maybe not him,

buut someone did. But he later told me that after he " opened " me up, he could

immediately see that my entire thyroid was cancer, and a spread to several

lymph nodes, and he went ahead and proceeded with the surgery, being a TT.

My path report also then confirmed stage II papillary cancer.

5-02 FNA 6-02 Core Biopsy Dx papillary cancer 7-10-02 TT 7-30-02 RAI

156mCi

[Guest guest]

I met with my surgeon last Friday. He interperted my

FNA biopsy results very differently from my endo. My

endo said he was fairly certain I had pap carcinoma

with possible follicular carcinoma. The surgeon only

thinks there is a 50/50 chance of malignancy. So we

settled on having a partial, unless the frozen section

during surgery comes back suspicious (or malignant)

the way my surgeon put it to me was that there was

only a tiny, tiny chance of a " false benign " result

during the operation, and he said there was only a

2%of having a 2nd surgery, which I absolutley do NOT

want to have.

Does anyone know how accurate the biopsy they do

during surgery is??? More accurate than FNA?

Ellyn- I was wondering if your surgeon had talked to

you about the odds of an innacurate benign diagnosis

during surgery, or if you were just one of the unlucky

1%? My surgery is scheduled for August 30th so I am

still thinking about the option of having a TT no

matter what. The only thing holding me back is that

the increased risk to my parathyroid glands and vocal

chords.

This is an awfuly hard decision to make.

I appreciate you input, thanks,

Sofía

soshrew@...

- Ellyn Wenk escribió: > A:

> Thyca

> > De: Ellyn Wenk

> > Sofía

> > I just had a partial thyroidectomy on July 1 and

> was

> > sent home with a

> > benign diagnosis. Then a small amount of cancer

> > was found and now I too will need to get another

> > operation and RAI

> > treatment. My doctor had me put on150 levoxyl

> > right

> > away and I was to have a blood test sent to him on

> > the 5th of August , a

> > little over a month after the operation. Now I

> have

> > another meeting and more tests . I am sure your

> > doctor just thinks a

> > partial is better because it leaves you with a

> > functioning

> > thyroid and you may not even need a hormone pill.

> I

> > want my other side

> > to stay so much but fear it is just about to come

> > out.

> > Ellyn

_________________________________________________________

[Guest guest]

> So we

> settled on having a partial, unless the frozen section

> during surgery comes back suspicious (or malignant)

> the way my surgeon put it to me was that there was

> only a tiny, tiny chance of a " false benign " result

> during the operation, and he said there was only a

> 2%of having a 2nd surgery, which I absolutley do NOT

> want to have.

I had to have 2 surgeries 3 weeks apart due to a " false benign " result

of the frozen section. I am a bit surprised at the 2% chance of a 2nd

surgery that your Dr. sites. When I attended the 1st Annual Thyca

Conference, it was asked how many had to have 2 surgeries and by a

show of hands the ratio was about 50%!

I haven't kept track of the percentage on this list, but I'm sure it

is more than 2%. A lot of folks have had to have a PT, followed by a

completion thyroiectomy a few days or weeks later.

Frozen sections are not as accurate as one would like. While the

thought of needing a 2nd thyroid surgery can cause apprehension -- it

is not something to be fearful of.

Marilyn

(TT 1994, papillary with a follicular variant and lung metastases.

Positive scans in 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998. 435mCi's RAI. Scans

negative in 1999, 2000, 2002 -- the last one using Thyrogen).

[Guest guest]

Hi Ellyn, I'm Kathy. I just had my surgery mid-June and my surgeon went over

risks. I also talked to my endo(whom I love-I'm very comfortable with this

dr.)My endo was more of the TT thought where my surgeon was more for PT & see

what we find while in there. I decided on TT prior to surgery. As i was lying

in pre-op, my surgeon tells me that we should go with PT & let him look around

(he was previously a CA surgeon so I did feel comfortable with him, altough this

timing had me in tears right before going in) I understand what you feel, cause

I had decided on having it all out - to me I was more comforable with the

security (so to speak) of TT. (none of this mattered for me cause I ended up

needing TT with 3 lymph nodes removed - all malignant). Good luck. Kathy

Re: hemi-thyroidectomy ?

I met with my surgeon last Friday. He interperted my

FNA biopsy results very differently from my endo. My

endo said he was fairly certain I had pap carcinoma

with possible follicular carcinoma. The surgeon only

thinks there is a 50/50 chance of malignancy. So we

settled on having a partial, unless the frozen section

during surgery comes back suspicious (or malignant)

the way my surgeon put it to me was that there was

only a tiny, tiny chance of a " false benign " result

during the operation, and he said there was only a

2%of having a 2nd surgery, which I absolutley do NOT

want to have.

Does anyone know how accurate the biopsy they do

during surgery is??? More accurate than FNA?

Ellyn- I was wondering if your surgeon had talked to

you about the odds of an innacurate benign diagnosis

during surgery, or if you were just one of the unlucky

1%? My surgery is scheduled for August 30th so I am

still thinking about the option of having a TT no

matter what. The only thing holding me back is that

the increased risk to my parathyroid glands and vocal

chords.

This is an awfuly hard decision to make.

I appreciate you input, thanks,

Sofía

soshrew@...

- Ellyn Wenk escribió: > A:

> Thyca

> > De: Ellyn Wenk

> > Sofía

> > I just had a partial thyroidectomy on July 1 and

> was

> > sent home with a

> > benign diagnosis. Then a small amount of cancer

> > was found and now I too will need to get another

> > operation and RAI

> > treatment. My doctor had me put on150 levoxyl

> > right

> > away and I was to have a blood test sent to him on

> > the 5th of August , a

> > little over a month after the operation. Now I

> have

> > another meeting and more tests . I am sure your

> > doctor just thinks a

> > partial is better because it leaves you with a

> > functioning

> > thyroid and you may not even need a hormone pill.

> I

> > want my other side

> > to stay so much but fear it is just about to come

> > out.

> > Ellyn

_________________________________________________________

[Guest guest]

Sofía-No, the surgeon did not talk to me about the possibility of a

false benign

diagnosis during surgery He seemed positive that it looked benign and

healthy. But the cancer was not in the nodule, it was under it. So

that must be

why they thought all was well. It took more than a day for the cancer

to show up.

Ellyn

> I met with my surgeon last Friday. He interperted my

> FNA biopsy results very differently from my endo. My

> endo said he was fairly certain I had pap carcinoma

> with possible follicular carcinoma. The surgeon only

> thinks there is a 50/50 chance of malignancy. So we

> settled on having a partial, unless the frozen section

> during surgery comes back suspicious (or malignant)

> the way my surgeon put it to me was that there was

> only a tiny, tiny chance of a " false benign " result

> during the operation, and he said there was only a

> 2%of having a 2nd surgery, which I absolutley do NOT

> want to have.

>

> Does anyone know how accurate the biopsy they do

> during surgery is??? More accurate than FNA?

>

> Ellyn- I was wondering if your surgeon had talked to

> you about the odds of an innacurate benign diagnosis

> during surgery, or if you were just one of the unlucky

> 1%? My surgery is scheduled for August 30th so I am

> still thinking about the option of having a TT no

> matter what. The only thing holding me back is that

> the increased risk to my parathyroid glands and vocal

> chords.

>

> This is an awfuly hard decision to make.

>

> I appreciate you input, thanks,

>

> Sofía

> soshrew@...

>

>

> - Ellyn Wenk escribió: > A:

>> Thyca

>>> De: Ellyn Wenk

>

>>> Sofía

>>> I just had a partial thyroidectomy on July 1 and

>> was

>>> sent home with a

>>> benign diagnosis. Then a small amount of cancer

>>> was found and now I too will need to get another

>>> operation and RAI

>>> treatment. My doctor had me put on150 levoxyl

>>> right

>>> away and I was to have a blood test sent to him on

>>> the 5th of August , a

>>> little over a month after the operation. Now I

>> have

>>> another meeting and more tests . I am sure your

>>> doctor just thinks a

>>> partial is better because it leaves you with a

>>> functioning

>>> thyroid and you may not even need a hormone pill.

>> I

>>> want my other side

>>> to stay so much but fear it is just about to come

>>> out.

>>> Ellyn

>

>

> _________________________________________________________

>

[Guest guest]

I hate to be the bearer of bad news but i had a right

hemithyroidectomy and the frozen section came back follicular cells

probably benign. My final pathology was papillary carcinoma. I had a

completion thyroidectomy and am awaiting RAI treatment. On a follow-

up visit my surgeon told me this false negative had happened with 5

of her last surgeries and if the frozen section came back positive

she would be surprised!! The surgery is not that bad compared to

abdominal surgery etc.. and if the growth is benign you still have a

functioning thyroid!! I had no damage to my parathyroids or my

laryngeal nerve. My advice is listen to your intuition. My gut

feeling about my " nodule " was not good but I was told it was likely

benign and thyca was very rare. Well it was CA and thyca is no longer

so rare and on the rise. I know of 2 others in my town recently dx

as well. I knew no one with thyca until this spring. I have worked

in the healthcare field for 15 years. At least it is a very

treatable and curable CA. I wish you well. Suzanne

In Thyca@y..., Ellyn Wenk <ellyn@e...> wrote:

> Sofía-No, the surgeon did not talk to me about the possibility of a

> false benign

> diagnosis during surgery He seemed positive that it looked benign

and

> healthy. But the cancer was not in the nodule, it was under it.

So

> that must be

> why they thought all was well. It took more than a day for the

cancer

> to show up.

> Ellyn

>

> > I met with my surgeon last Friday. He interperted my

> > FNA biopsy results very differently from my endo. My

> > endo said he was fairly certain I had pap carcinoma

> > with possible follicular carcinoma. The surgeon only

> > thinks there is a 50/50 chance of malignancy. So we

> > settled on having a partial, unless the frozen section

> > during surgery comes back suspicious (or malignant)

> > the way my surgeon put it to me was that there was

> > only a tiny, tiny chance of a " false benign " result

> > during the operation, and he said there was only a

> > 2%of having a 2nd surgery, which I absolutley do NOT

> > want to have.

> >

> > Does anyone know how accurate the biopsy they do

> > during surgery is??? More accurate than FNA?

> >

> > Ellyn- I was wondering if your surgeon had talked to

> > you about the odds of an innacurate benign diagnosis

> > during surgery, or if you were just one of the unlucky

> > 1%? My surgery is scheduled for August 30th so I am

> > still thinking about the option of having a TT no

> > matter what. The only thing holding me back is that

> > the increased risk to my parathyroid glands and vocal

> > chords.

> >

> > This is an awfuly hard decision to make.

> >

> > I appreciate you input, thanks,

> >

> > Sofía

> > soshrew@y...

> >

> >

> > - Ellyn Wenk <ellyn@e...> escribió: > A:

> >> Thyca@y...

> >>> De: Ellyn Wenk <ellyn@e...>

> >

> >>> Sofía

> >>> I just had a partial thyroidectomy on July 1 and

> >> was

> >>> sent home with a

> >>> benign diagnosis. Then a small amount of cancer

> >>> was found and now I too will need to get another

> >>> operation and RAI

> >>> treatment. My doctor had me put on150 levoxyl

> >>> right

> >>> away and I was to have a blood test sent to him on

> >>> the 5th of August , a

> >>> little over a month after the operation. Now I

> >> have

> >>> another meeting and more tests . I am sure your

> >>> doctor just thinks a

> >>> partial is better because it leaves you with a

> >>> functioning

> >>> thyroid and you may not even need a hormone pill.

> >> I

> >>> want my other side

> >>> to stay so much but fear it is just about to come

> >>> out.

> >>> Ellyn

> >

> >

> > _________________________________________________________

> >