1 year + after care questions

nasher
nasher Member Posts: 505 Member
in Thyroid Cancer #1
as most of you know i am 1 year + from thyroid cancer

as i transition from military life to the real world my doctors are going to change... all of them... so

I was wondering for the people who have been more than 1 year what plans for WBS's and how often should they check what types of bloodwork... Since I am going to have to convince (pulls out 12 lb maul) the doctors about what I should be going through.

thanks for your support and help in advance

Craig

Comments

  • amorriso
    amorriso Member Posts: 185
    #2
    One year
    I've also reached my one year mark - I think. I was diagnosed a year ago so and finished the last RAI in May. I go for a check up tomorrow, and will be asking about the next few months of followup.

    My endo/onco isnt the greatest, so I double check everything he says with another surgeon whom I trust - even though he's not an expert in this field.

    I'll let you know what they tell me - I've been kind of wondering the same questions myself.

    Andrea
  • ibeatcanser
    ibeatcanser Member Posts: 47
    #3
    one year...
    Hi, first, congratulations for marking your first year. This October will be 2 years since I had my first whole body scan.

    Dependent upon your blood work results and the changes your body is still going through your endo will more than likely do the following:
    1. First year after RAI: blood tests, check levels. Either take you off your meds for 14-21 days, perform an ultrasound. After the 14-21 days, blood tests to see if your medication was masking any "cancer cells" The other option, go off meds for 21 days, go on low iodine diet, then low dose RAI and WBS. Some people choose the thyrogen shots. I chose not to have the shots and my endo didn't recommend it for me. My levels were where my endo wanted them to be, so we did the ultrasoumd. A lot of places are opting for ultrasound over WBS for the year after check.

    2. Blood tests every six months (unless your endo wants to keep you on the three month schedule.

    After your first year check, be prepared for your body to go out of sync for at least six months. It won't be as bad as the first RAI, but everyone reacts differently.

    My suggestion to you is to ALWAYS KEEP EXTRA HYDRATED. I learned the hard way that if you eat sour, salty or spicy food, you have to consume double the amount of water right after or it may lead to salivary gland infection, since your salivary glands are no longer "normal" from the RAI. Also, make sure they don't mess with your meds if it's currently working fine for you.

    Keep note of how you feel, sleep patterns etc, weight gain or loss for no reason. Exercise, diet and positive mindset are also key.

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