Name of the medical condition and other names that it’s been known by
• Thyroid Cancer
• Thyroid Carcinoma
What is Thyroid Cancer?
Thyroid cancer is a type of cancer that starts in the thyroid gland. The thyroid is a butterfly-shaped gland at the base of your neck, just below the Adam's apple. This gland is important because it makes hormones that help control your heart rate, blood pressure, body temperature, and weight.
In thyroid cancer, the normal cells in the thyroid gland start to change and grow out of control, forming a tumor.
There are several types of thyroid cancer:
• Papillary thyroid cancer: This is the most common type, making up about 80% of all thyroid cancers. It usually grows slowly and can often be cured.
• Follicular thyroid cancer: This type accounts for about 10-15% of thyroid cancers. It also tends to grow slowly and has a good chance of being cured.
• Medullary thyroid cancer: This is a rare type that starts in special cells in the thyroid called C cells. It makes up about 2% of thyroid cancers.
• Anaplastic thyroid cancer: This is the rarest and most aggressive type, making up less than 2% of thyroid cancers. It grows and spreads quickly.
Most thyroid cancers don't cause any signs or symptoms early on. As the cancer grows, you might notice:
• A lump or swelling in your neck
• Pain in your neck or throat
• Trouble swallowing
• Changes in your voice, like hoarseness
• Swollen lymph nodes in your neck
Doctors aren't sure exactly what causes thyroid cancer, but some things can increase your risk:
• Being exposed to high levels of radiation
• Having certain genetic conditions
• Not getting enough iodine in your diet
• Being female (women are more likely to get thyroid cancer than men)
• Being older (most cases are found in people over 40)
To diagnose thyroid cancer, doctors usually:
• Feel your neck for any lumps
• Do blood tests to check your thyroid hormone levels
• Use ultrasound to look at your thyroid
• Do a biopsy, where they take a small sample of the thyroid to check for cancer cells
Treatment for thyroid cancer depends on the type and stage of cancer but often includes:
• Surgery to remove part or all of the thyroid gland
• Radioactive iodine treatment to kill any remaining cancer cells
• Thyroid hormone therapy to replace the hormones your body no longer makes
• In some cases, radiation therapy or chemotherapy
Most thyroid cancers grow slowly and can be cured with treatment. Even for cancers that can't be cured, treatments can help control the disease for a long time.
Trend
• In the United States, about 43,720 new cases of thyroid cancer (11,270 in men and 32,450 in women) were expected to be diagnosed in 2023.
• The number of thyroid cancer cases has been increasing over the past several decades. This is partly due to better detection methods that can find small thyroid cancers that might have been missed in the past.
History
Thyroid cancer was first described in the medical literature in the late 1800s.
In the early 1900s, doctors began using radiation to treat various conditions in children, not realizing it could increase the risk of thyroid cancer later in life. This led to an increase in thyroid cancer cases in the mid-1900s. The link between radiation exposure and thyroid cancer was discovered in the 1950s.
In the 1970s and 1980s, new surgical techniques and treatments like radioactive iodine therapy greatly improved outcomes for thyroid cancer patients.
More recently, advances in genetic testing have helped identify people at higher risk for certain types of thyroid cancer, allowing for earlier detection and treatment.
Source of Information
• American Cancer Society
• Cleveland Clinic
• Mayo Clinic
For informational purposes only. Consult a medical professional for advice.
