Thyroid cancer is a disease that you get when abnormal cells begin to grow in your thyroid gland.
Thyroid cancer is a rare type of cancer that affects the thyroid gland, a small gland present at the base of the neck. One of the common symptoms of this cancer is a painless lump or swelling in the neck. Although it is not a common type of cancer, it accounts to 1 – 5% of all cancers.
Thyroid cancer is an uncommon type of cancer. Most people who have it do very well, because the cancer is usually found early and the treatments work well. After it is treated, thyroid cancer may come back, sometimes many years after treatment.Experts don’t know what causes thyroid cancer. But like other cancers, changes in the DNA of your cells seem to play a role. These DNA changes may include changes that are inherited as well as those that happen as you get older. People who have been exposed to a lot of radiation have a greater chance of getting thyroid cancer.
Thyroid Cancer causes
The causes of Thyroid Cancer are history of some types of thyroid disease, Exposure to radiation, especially in childhood and having low iodine levels, inherited abnormal gene or a bowel condition called FAP, being overweight and the condition where the body overproduces growth hormone known as acromegaly.
- Familial Adenomatous Polyposis
- Acromegaly
- Radiation Exposure
- Weight and Height
- Having a Previous Benign
- Iodine Deficiency
Thyroid Cancer Symptoms
Thyroid cancer doesn’t always have symptoms, so it can be hard to detect and diagnose. In fact, some of the possible symptoms aren’t actually caused by thyroid cancer itself. Instead, these symptoms can be caused by a thyroid nodule and thyroid nodules aren’t necessarily cancerous.
- Lump in the Neck
- Swollen Lymph Node
- Hoarse Voice
- Difficulty Swallowing or Breathing
- Neck Pain
- Throat Pain
Thyroid Cancer Treatments
Chemotherapy
It is the most common form of treatment that involves the use of drugs to stop the growth of the cancerous cells. Here is a detailed explanation about chemotherapy.
Thyroid Cancer
Radiation therapy
This treatment option uses high-energy X-rays to kill cancerous cells. Again this therapy is of two types.
- Internal radiation therapy in which radioactive substances are placed near the cancerous cells
- External radiation therapy that involves sending radiation from a machine outside the body
Surgery
If the cancer is non-malignant in nature, this is the most preferred option to treat cancer. In this, either a part of the thyroid gland or the entire gland is surgically removed (depending upon the extent of the malignancy).
Thyroid hormone therapy
This technique blocks the action of the thyroid hormones and thus, stops the cancerous cells from growing. It also involves the use of drugs to prevent the body from producing TSH (thyroid stimulating hormone), which might enhance the growth of the tumour.
Targeted therapy
It is a type of treatment that helps in killing the cancerous cells without harming the normal cells in the body. It involves targeting a specific substance such as tyrosine kinase inhibitor to inhibit the growth of the cancerous cells.