cancer in both sides of the thyroid

When I was diagnosed, I had
When I was diagnosed, I had the right side removed, along with the tumour. After confirmation of cancer, the left side was removed "just in case", as I was late reporting a lump and difficulty swallowing, and the tumour was quite large. Fortunately for me, the cancer had not spread.
Do you know if your symptoms were advanced by the time you first went to the doctor?

Tumors Both Sides
I was diagnosed after I had a lymph node removed that had popped up, Papillary Stage III. I had a total thyroidectomy and there were two foci in each lobe. At the same time, I had a modified neck disection which involved taking most of the lymph nodes from the right side of my neck which was the side on which the lymph node had popped up and a few from the left side as well. The surgeon said nothing about the chances of finding foci in both lobes of the thyroid but he did say it was rare for metastasis to spread to both sides of the neck. Apparently the lymphatic system is such that the lymph networks for each side of the neck are discrete.

The one thing about my experience that was rare and possibly exceptional was that my tumors had metastisized as small as they were, the largest was 2.6 mm and my endocrinologist who speciallizes in thyroid cancer said it's unheard of for a tumor smaller than 5 mm to metastisize.

Alan

Cancer in both sides
Hi, I had a mass found by MRI and was sent to an ENT. He did a FNA of the right side that came back indeterminate.He said I had a 10% chance of cancer, so not to worry. So on Aug 11,11 I went in for a right lobectomy and ended up with a total thyroidectomy. The frozen path came back papillary cancer on the right. Two weeks later, doc said right side was benign and the left had 2mm medullary thyroid cancer. I went to MDAnderson on Oct 8,2012 and saw Dr Sherman. He had the pathology redo the path on the right side and came back two weeks later as Hurthle cell papillary carcinoma. SO medullary in left and Hurthle in right, two rare forms and all my husband says, is for me to stop being an over acheiver! LOL. SO now awaiting RAI and getting the tissue/cancer that is growing in my neck to die. Good luck to ya'll

ksblack said:

cancer in both sides of thyroid

in 2006 I was diagnosed with thyroid cancer adn it was in both sides.  i had one side removed on Monday and then he came back on Wednesday and told me at 3:00

it was in the other side and worse as well and took me right to surgery.  Recovery was tough but  made it through it all.  I had the highest dose of radiation I could have

and so far all is okay.  My levels are not right but he just raised my synthroid dose to 224 mcg and I go back in 3 months to be tested again.  He never mentioned that it was rare for it to be in both sides.  Had I not insisted on a biopsy I would still have it today unknowingly.  I hope you do well.

 

Take care and may God bless you,

Karen

What Now?

I've had Grave's Disease for the past nine years. During a routine blood test this past January, it was discovered that I had a Papillary tumor (1x1x1 cm) on my left lobe. My doctor said that it is usual to remove the entire thyroid and so he did, along with 16 lymph nodes. Two days ago I learned that the cancer had spread to the right lobe and one of the lymph nodes. He made it seem like no big deal, that it was taken care of and that after my radiated iodine, all will be fine. I hope so. Nevertheless, hearing that having tumors in both lobes is rare is a shocker to me.  

 

T.